Lesson 6 – His protection
Read Psalm 23 - www.bible.com/bible/59/psa.23.esv

In a previous lesson we read how God battles for us. In this lesson we want to see even more of this – God does much more than battle for us, He protects us. When we understand this protection, it will help us conquer our fear.

In Psalm 27:1-3 we read, “The LORD is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the defense of my life; Whom shall I dread? When evildoers came upon me to devour my flesh, My adversaries and my enemies, they stumbled and fell. Though a host encamp against me, My heart will not fear; Though war arise against me, In spite of this I shall be confident.” This is the thought of protection in battle as we learned before. This is when someone attacks you, a co-worker accuses you unjustly, a friend turns on you and betrays you, someone tells you in some way you are worthless and you wonder if they’re right. Our battle, we must remember, is not against these people, but against the powers of evil that drive these people to do what they’re doing. God battles for us and protects us.

Does His protection mean we will never lose our job, or lose our friends, or even feel worthless? No. We must remember that all sin has consequences – even the sins of other people may have consequences for us. But that does NOT mean God lost the battle. Look again at the end of the verses quoted above – “though war arise against me … I shall be confident.” Our confidence is in God, not in the circumstances around us.


But see God’s protection also from Psalm 3:5 – “I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the LORD sustains me.” Even when I go about the everyday things in my life, God is protecting me. For me, it is sometimes these everyday times, when nothing is going wrong in my life, that I begin to fear the future and what “might be” then. It starts quietly, maybe something I hear mentioned in the news. There might be a deadly illness that has broken out somewhere in the world and I begin to wonder what I would do if that would come to my town. I hear trouble in another country because of economics – what would happen if this would come to where I live?

This kind of fear is called a failure to trust God, trying to find a way to do things for ourselves rather than waiting on God’s provision. God promises in Isaiah 46:10 that His purposes will all be fulfilled. If we believe Him, then we never need to fear the future again. His purpose is to give us a home with Him (John 14:1-6), and His purpose WILL be accomplished.

Verse to memorize:
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever. Psalm 23:6 (ESV)