The Secret Place of the Most High in God – Psalms 91

The secret place of the most high is a “sanctuary”, to be “hidden in God”. It’s a place of “refuge” “the courts of the Lord” or “strong tower” or “safe place” or “temple of the living God” is where we run to. Sanctuary is where God is.

The words “the secret place” that we find in Psalm 91 means to hide by covering. So we could read the verse to say this.”He that makes his hiding place under the covering of the Most High. Is God covering you? Is He your dwelling?

The Secret Place of the Most High:

When we have battles raging around you, then Psalms is a form of warfare. It is a place to be hidden from the enemy by the Lord to fight or to allow the Lord to fight for you and be covered by the Him for protection so that the fiery darts do not hit you because the Lord becomes part of your armor. It is a place of rest so that we can get a strategy from the Lord to fight against the schemes of the enemy. Also, it is a place of rest in the throne room of the Lord. In fact, most warfare should take place in the throne room and not in the second realm of heaven. There we can be above the enemy in rest and in peace with the Lord and gaining strength during the weariness of war.

When we abide, there is peace and comfort from the Lord knowing he is in control of the situation. When you are in the third realm of heaven, then you can push the enemy down because the Lord is behind you all the way cause he will give you plans in how to fight and or stand before the Lord. We can come to Him for safety and comfort and enter into a place of worship.

Worship is warfare. Here we are above the enemy and worshipping the Lord in turn releases the angels of the Lord to do battle for us. It releases our hands of war and releases the hands of the warring angles to fight for you under the control of our mighty king Jesus. Read 2 Chronicles 20:16-37. This is when the enemy was coming against Israel at all sides Jehoshaphat went to prayer, gathered the worshippers and praised the Lord and when they reached the top of the mountain, the enemy was already destroyed. All they had to do was go after the spoils of the enemy.
All the promises of Psalm 91 are targeting the person who has chosen to be hidden in the covering of God. Anger, rage, perversion, adultery, addictions, violence, rebellion, complacency and many other afflictions press in to our lives daily driving us to a place of chaos. A dwelling seems to me to be a place that you are consciously choosing to linger. God’s words say simply If you chose to linger in His presence, you will be given this place as an abiding place an abode. In the Hebrew it means” To stay permanently”.

We need to stand up with the authority given to us as joint heirs to the throne. Stand up with confidence and holiness. There is a place that can be attained. A safe place where the enemy can’t just walk in and sit down.

In Psalms 91:1 – He that Dwelleth in the Secret Place

“He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.”

The blessings promised are not for all believers, but for those who live in close fellowship with God. Every child of God looks towards the inner sanctuary and the mercy seat. When we embrace the rich grace obtain unusual and continuous communion with God, so as to abide in Christ and Christ in them, become possessors of rare and special benefits.

The veil is rent, the mercy seat is revealed, the covering cherubs are manifest, and the awful glory of the Most High is apparent. When we are the Lord, we can be the Lord’s constant guests shall find that he will never suffer any to be injured within his gates; he has eaten the covenant salt with them, and is pledged for their protection.

Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. Be strong in the Lord and powerful in His might! Determine that you will find the time in order to seek this most precious shelter. But what is SO valuable about this place? If safety, security, and love. There is a yearning in my heart to be closer than I have ever been to my Lord. There is one more extremely valuable commodity associated with being in that the secret place of the Most High. PEACE!!!

The Omnipotent Lord will shield all those who dwell with him, they shall remain under his care as guests under the protection of their host. In the most holy place the wings of the cherubim were the most conspicuous objects, and they probably suggested to the psalmist the expression here employed. Those who commune with God are safe with Him, no evil can reach them, for the outstretched wings of his power and love cover them from all harm. This protection is constant—they abide under it, and it is all sufficient, for it is the shadow of the Almighty, whose omnipotence will surely screen them from all attack. No shelter can be imagined at all comparable to the protection of Jehovah’s own shadow.

The Almighty himself is where his shadow is, and hence those who dwell in his secret place are shielded by himself. What a shade in the day of noxious heat! What a refuge in the hour of deadly storm! Communion with God is safety. The more closely we cling to our Almighty Father the more confident may we be.

Matthew 6:33, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”

Matthew 7:7, “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.”

The word ‘dwell’ is an old English word that means ‘to live’ in a place. This is a spiritual place of safety and rest. You get there in prayer. The Lord is our protector and He WILL protect you, guide you, help you. No matter what the problems are. It is a safety place the enemy is not allowed to come into and a place you can rest and lean on the Lord to do your battles. The secret place of the Most High must be very close to God. ‘Most High’ tells us one more very important fact as well. There is no higher than He. Nothing and no one is higher than our Father. If God is the highest and there is no other, then that TRULY would be a safe and secure place.

Psalms 91:2 – He is my refuge and my fortress

“I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.”

· First, that he is your refuge – the shelter in which you abide.

· Next, that he is your God – the one who has all authority in your life.

· Finally, there is the fact that you trust him – tell them that.

He promises to deliver you if you will trust him. He delivers us in two ways;

  • He delivers us from troubles – for when we follow his truth he keeps us from temptation and evil.
  • He delivers us out of trouble – if we will but turn to him.

 

Psalm 91:1-2 tells us to let the Lord God be our shelter, our refuge and our fortress. A fortress is a stronghold of a permanent nature.   We put our trust in God is permanent.  Picture in your mind the sturdiest building around. Construct a wall around it made of the best and strongest material available. Nothing can come in without permission. No outside interference of any kind is possible.

Fifteen (15) times in scriptures it mentions ‘fortress’ which means a stronghold, a place that is solid, fortified and secure. This would, indeed, be a refuge. 46 times, the bible talks about the word ‘refuge’ and each time it is saying that a particular place is a haven of safety, secure, restful.

The bird flies away to the thicket, and the fox hastens to its hole, every creature uses its refuge in the hour of danger, and even so in all peril or fear of peril let us flee unto Jehovah, the Eternal Protector of his own. Let us, when we are secure in the Lord, rejoice that our position is unassailable, for he is our fortress as well as our refuge. No moat, portcullis, drawbridge, wall, battlement and donjon, could make us so secure as we are when the attributes of the Lord of Hosts environ us around.

Lord his refuge and fortress, he adds, My God! in him will I trust. Now he can say no more; “my God” means all, and more than all, that heart can conceive by way of security. It was most meet that he should say “in him will I trust”, since to deny faith to such a one were willful wickedness and wanton insult. He who dwells in an impregnable fortress, naturally trusts in it.

Samuel 22:3 The God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; thou savest me from violence.

Psalms 14:6 Ye have shamed the counsel of the poor, because the LORD is his refuge.

Psalms 18:2 The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.

Psalms 31:1 In thee, O LORD, do I put my trust; let me never be ashamed: deliver me in thy righteousness.

2 Bow down thine ear to me; deliver me speedily: be thou my strong rock, for an house of defence to save me.

3 For thou art my rock and my fortress; therefore for thy name’s sake lead me, and guide me.

Psalms 32:7 Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance. Selah.

Psalms 32:10 Many sorrows shall be to the wicked: but he that trusteth in the LORD, mercy shall compass him about.

Psalms 46:1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

Psalms 46:7 The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.

Psalms 46:11 The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.

Psalms 91:3 – Surely he shall deliver thee

“Psalm 91:3 Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, [and] from the noisome pestilence.

The fowler and noisome pestilence are to be interpreted as meaning any kind of danger; moral, spiritual or material that might threaten your welfare. Yet in spite or whatever it may be, you are not to be afraid; for protection is now assured for you in those beautiful words just quoted. God does shield you from any condition. Remember, “Ye shall know the Truth and the truth shall make you free.”

The terror by night and the pestilence imply something unknown to you or may be suspected by you, might be an impending accident or any enemy or hidden trouble. But whatever it may be, you have the promise that when you call upon Him in prayer, all these things are taken care of by Him. We can receive His promises if we abide and walk in His truth.

Pestilence is a form of sin. We shall not be infected by it if we abide with the thrice Holy One; there is also a pestilence of disease, and even from that calamity our faith shall win immunity when abiding in God, walks on in calm serenity, and ventures all things for duty’s sake. Faith by cheering the heart keeps it free from the fear that, in times of pestilence, kills more than the plague itself.

It will not award off disease and death, but where the man is such as the first verse describes, it will assuredly render him immortal where others die; if all the saints are not so sheltered it is because they have not all such a close abiding with God, and consequently not such confidence in the promise. In today’s world, we need to pray this over ourselves dayly from the plagues and biological warfare that is on the earth.

 

John 14:27, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

Philippians 4:6-7, “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

Psalms 91:4 – Nestled Under His Wings.

“He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.”

God has shown us that He is our refuge and fortress. He is our secret place to hide from the sin-filled world. We can trust Him. He is our deliverer from pestilence and from the individual who wants to snare us with sin.

 

Picture God’s amazing Grace and Mercy. Watching the mother hen watching over her eggs. The mother hen was so dedicated to making certain the eggs were not left alone or that they didn’t get cold. She very carefully arranged them so that she would be able to sit on all of them at the same time. If one moved outside her feathers, she put her wing over it and brought it back in.

 

Father came back with food for her while she sat attentively on the nest. When the time came, the eggs started to hatch. Five baby birds began to cheep. They almost always had their mouths open for something to eat. The father diligently brought food for them. But Mama kept them warm and safe from harm of any kind. The parents made certain that they were fed and cleaned. Mama and Papa attended to each need.

Only when a baby would get too active and fall out of the nest were there any dangers. The parents hovered around the child until they could get it back into the nest where it was safe once more.

Isn’t our Father like that? The verse states “He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust:”. Doesn’t the idea of our Father covering us with Himself and making sure we are under His wing sound incredible? Just as the Mama bird cares for her young, our Father cares for us, His young.

God: fed us, cleaned up, kept warm and safe. The times we have fallen from the nest are the times when it seems that there is no way out. Yet, our Father has given us a way of escape (I Corinthians 10:13). If we will simply run to Him when things are out of hand, when we have done something wrong, He is there to lift us up to the high place and gather us under His wing. Under his wings is a hiding place from the enemy.

When the mother hen covered her babies with her wings, the baby hens were out of sight from the enemy. The enemy does not know you exists because you are under the Father’s wings. When we pray, we should ask the Lord to hide us from the enemy with His pinions. It is a form of warfare.

His truth—his true promise, and his faithfulness to his promise, shall be thy shield and buckler. Double armour has he who relies upon the Lord. He bears a shield and wears an all surrounding coat—such is the force of the word “buckler.” To quench fiery darts the truth is a most effectual shield, and to blunt all swords it is an equally effectual coat of mail. Let us go forth to battle thus harnessed for the war, and we shall be safe in the thickest of the fight. It has been so, and so shall it be till we reach the land of peace, and there among the “helmed cherubim and sworded seraphim, ” we will wear no other ornament, his truth shall still be our shield and buckler.

In the times when Rome was ruling the world, the soldiers had an amazingly huge shield to use going into battle. This piece of equipment was large enough to cover the entire man. If the army was advancing on the enemy, often the soldiers would cover themselves with these shields, walking close enough to each other that the shields overlapped.

The next row of soldiers would hold the shields up in the air thus making it impossible for the foe to throw spears or shoot arrows at them. All the efforts of the enemy were of no effect because the shields would stop all weapons of that type. The equipment was so large that, if the soldier was wounded or died, the companions put him on the shield and carried him off the battle field.

The next piece of gear is the buckler. The soldier would strap a much smaller, often round, shield onto his left arm with a leather strap. This type of equipment was used to fend off close combat strikes by the enemy swords. Soldiers could then cover themselves while using their own swords.

What God wants us to know is that His Truth, the Word of God, is enough armor for us (Ephesians 6:10-1 . Not only have we been invited to sit in the secret place under our Father’s wing but we are also given armor to protect ourselves when the enemy comes at us with everything he has to offer. Imagine being able to hold up that enormous shield to cover yourself totally. In close combat, that buckler sure comes in handy to fend off the fiery darts or swords that the opponent has sent your way.

No matter what is going on in your life, God is there to protect you, shield you, care for you, comfort you and will be just like the parents of the baby birds when you fall from the nest. But there is one thing you need to remember. The parents of the babies only came when they heard the cries of the child.

Come to the safety of your Heavenly Father today and enjoy the Peace that passes ALL understanding.

Psalms 91:5 – Thou Shalt Not Be Afraid.

Psalms 91:5, “Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day;”

Fear is a strong emotion caused by the anticipation of danger, trouble or evil. However, there is the need to “fear” God and those in authority. This means to revere with a sense of awe, honour and respect.

Fear becomes destructive when it is not dealt with in a healthy manner, especially if it is the result of a traumatic experience in the past, that has been repressed. There are many fears and phobias that may be debilitating, such as claustrophobia, fears of inferiority, poor health and poverty.

Such frail creatures are we that both by night and by day we are in danger, and so sinful are we that in either season we may be readily carried away by fear; the promise before us secures the favorite of heaven both from danger and from the fear of it. Night is the congenial hour of horrors, when alarms walk abroad like beasts of prey, or ghouls from among the tombs; our fears turn the sweet season of repose into one of dread, and though angels are abroad and fill our chambers, we dream of demons and dire visitants from hell. Blessed is that communion with God that renders us impervious to midnight frights, and horrors born of darkness. The Lord hath said, “No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper.” In times of great danger those who have made the Lord their refuge, and therefore have refused to use the carnal weapon, have been singularly preserved; those who walk by faith shall be protected, from cunning heresies they shall be preserved, and in sudden temptations they shall be secured from harm.

“I sought the Lord, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears” (Psalm 34:4)

“There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love” (1 John 4:1 .

“For God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7).

“The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” (Psalm 27:1).

“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand” (Isaiah 41:10)

“You who fear the Lord, praise Him! All you descendants of Jacob, glorify Him, and fear Him, all you offspring of Israel!” (Psalm 22:23).

“I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth….The angel of the Lord encamps all around those who fear Him and delivers them” (Psalm 34:1,7).

“He who dwells in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty…. A thousand may fall at your side, and ten thousand at your right hand; but it shall not come near you” (Psalm 91:1,7).

Psalms 91:6 – The Pestilence Can’t Win. No Destruction For Me!

Psalms 91:6, “Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.”

Pestilence.

In this verse, “Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness;” we can once again have the assurance that we do not have to take this. The enemy chooses his fights carefully. He strikes at a time when you are at your lowest point. Late at night, the body is trying to regenerate through sleep. If a person is deprived of this, it cannot do so. If a person is susceptible to illness, the time for it to strike is late at night. But God says that we can live in His shadow, under His Wings. The first four verses have already given you the surety that you have His protection. In verse five, we learned that He tells us not to be afraid, commands it. If He commands it then it is certainly possible that we don’t have to keep fear. It can be thrown off. It is a choice. I love that. We can CHOOSE not to be afraid of the pestilence in the dark. That stalker can’t harm us!

Our Father says that we are not to be concerned with this. “nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.” Because of the promises that God has made, we can go into that secret place, in the shelter of His shadow, under His Wings. Prayer is such a wonderful place, that secret place. Abiding (living) and tucked safely in the feathers of the Father, we can find that place of peace while the Most High God takes care of all things. Ask and it shall be given to you. Seek and you shall find. Knock and the door shall be opened to you (Matthew 7:7).

As believers, we can seek the mercy seat and is sheltered beneath the wings which overshadow it, shall abide in perfect peace. Days of horror and nights of terror are for other men, his days and nights are alike spent with God, and therefore pass away in sacred quiet. His peace is not a thing of times and seasons, it does not rise and set with the sun, nor does it depend upon the healthiness of the atmosphere or the security of the country. Upon the child of the Lord’s own heart pestilence has no destroying power, and calamity no wasting influence: pestilence walks in darkness, but he dwells in light; destruction wastes at noonday, but upon him another sun has risen whose beams bring restoration. Remember that the voice which saith “thou shalt not fear” is that of God himself, who hereby pledges his word for the safety of those who abide under his shadow, nay, not for their safety only, but for their serenity. So far shall they be from being injured that they shall not even be made to fear the ills that are around them, since the Lord protects them.

Psalms 91:7 – They Are Falling All Around Me

Psalms 91:7, “A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee.”

In today’s modern world, harsh reality flares up in front of our eyes daily. The recent war has brought home more clearly than ever the toll that is paid by everyone. More folks are searching to find some logical reason for any of this. More people need the comfort from losses, the feeling of security in an insecure world, someone to tell them that their lives are not going to be completely altered today.

One thing that God acts spiritually before all else. Everything written in God’s Word (Bible) is given spiritually that way. Therefore, the first thing about this Psalm is the spiritual side of it. God’s protection is greater than anything this world has to offer. There is a point in a faith walk where a person comes to seek God for Himself and not for what can be gained, only what He can do for them. When that happens, God shows that individual His vast protection.

He sits at the right hand of the Father watching over your prayers as your High Priest (Hebrews 3:1). When God’s family is your family, that Psalm will become a part of your life too. Reach out and touch the Lord today! You will never be the same again.

In a measure this also is true of physical evil; the Lord still puts a difference between Israel and Egypt in the day of his plagues. Sennacherib’s army is blasted, but Jerusalem is in health.

Psalms 91:8 “Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.”

For then it will not be the time of mercy, but of judgment; nor shall any mercy in any way be ever shown towards the wicked there, where no improvement can be hoped for.

This time, the battle is between the demons and the angels. You are privileged to watch this. The fight looks really dangerous. The angels are beginning to win. Demons are falling everywhere. In the meanwhile, you notice a faint glow all around you. Wondering what it might be, you try to touch it but there isn’t anything there. You look around. A huge angel is standing right next to you. He is obviously guarding you from the situation. Yet there is still that glow. The warrior angel turns to you and tells you that it is the shield of God surrounding you. It is impossible for the demon forces to penetrate it. You are protected.

“Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked.”

The sight shall reveal both the justice and the mercy of God; in them that perish the severity of God will be manifest, and in the believer’s escape the richness of divine goodness will be apparent. Joshua and Caleb verified this promise.

 

Category : Biblical Stories, The Secret Place