Rock

My meditation today centers around this expression found in PSA 18:2: “The LORD is my rock.” In several other Psalms God is referred to as the rock. Why is God described as a rock? A good place to begin in answering that question is considering the definition of a rock.

Rock – 1. A large rugged mass of stone forming a cliff, crag, or natural prominence on land or in the sea. 2. In figurative or allusive uses: a. A source of danger or destruction, usually with allusion to shipwreck. b. Something which affords a sure foundation or support; something which gives shelter or protection; used esp. with reference to Christ.

Obviously, the Creator of all rocks is not Himself a mass of stone. The word rock is being used here figuratively. However, the figure is derived from the primary meaning of the word. When we know what a rock is primarily, then we can learn why God is described as a rock. Something about a rock tells us something about our God. It is interesting to note how the Holy Spirit draws from things in the creation in order to reveal God to us. James Jordan had this interesting insight:

We simply cannot grasp God’s infinite tri-personality all at once. For this reason, God chose to reveal the infinity of His personality in the diversity of this world. Various things in the world reveal various things about God.

As Scripturally informed believers we can find reflections of God throughout His creation. In describing God as a rock, the Holy Spirit reveals to us what we can experience in a relationship with God.

The above definition says that a rock is a figure of something which affords a sure foundation or support. It provides us with strength to bear us up. We have strength to stand and withstand our troubles because we have a sure foundation beneath us giving us support. Hence, God as our rock is a source of strength.

Psalms 62:7 In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.

A rock is also a figure of something which gives protection. Therefore, as our rock God is a source of defence to protect us.

Psalms 62:6 He only is my rock and my salvation: he is my defence; I shall not be moved.

If you are “stedfast and unmoveable” in your Christian profession, it is because your rock is defending you. He is protecting you from whatever is beyond your ability to bear. As our rock, God is a refuge to which we may flee when we perceive danger. We flee to Him to protect us.

Psalms 94:22 But the LORD is my defence; and my God is the rock of my refuge.

And then a rock is something which gives shelter. In the blistering heat or in a raging storm, what better place to be than under the shelter of a mighty rock, where one can find refuge, rest, and relief? And such is our Lord Jesus Christ, God manifest in the flesh, the God-Man.

Isaiah 32:2 And a man shall be as an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.

For centuries believers have found comfort in this revelation of God as their rock. Many songs have been composed which celebrate this theme. In our congregation we sing, “On Christ the solid Rock I stand”; “Rock of ages, cleft for me”; “In the rifted Rock I’m resting”; “O Thou blessed Rock of ages, hide thou me.” Indeed, the very survival of the church of Jesus Christ is owing to the fact that its Rock has strengthened and defended it.

Matthew 16:18 …Upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

Another thought that emerges from this description of God as a rock is that of constancy. A rock is a sure foundation, shelter, and defence because of its permanence and stability. A massive rock does not move. It does not collapse under pressure. It abides. One quality we look for in human relationships is the quality of constancy, dependability, faithfulness. We want someone who will always be there for us, someone we can count on. How we need constancy in a shifting, changing, dying world! But, alas, all human supports are limited and temporary. No creature can always be there for us. At some point any human being will let us down. And then there is always death, the Grim Reaper, to snatch away those on whom we depend. That is why we must always look beyond creature supports to God as our ultimate support. Only God can be a rock in the fullest sense of all that a rock implies. He is the only one who can always be there for us, the one we can always count on. Hence, we do well to say with the Psalmist regarding our God:

Psalms 62:6 He only is my rock and my salvation: he is my defence; I shall not be moved.

In closing, observe in the definition above that a rock is also a figure of a source of danger or destruction. The comforting figures that arise from the description of God as a rock belong to those who can say with the Psalmist, “The LORD is my rock.” If you have no personal relationship with God, then these comforts do not belong to you. If God is not your rock, then to you He is a source of danger or destruction. When speaking of Himself as the Stone (Rock) the Lord Jesus Christ had this to say:

Luke 20:17 …What is this then that is written, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner? 18 Whosoever shall fall upon that stone shall be broken; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.

Have you received the Lord Jesus Christ? Is He your Lord Whom you obey? Are His commandments the rule by which you govern your life? Is he your rock? Or have you rejected Him? If you have, then you will find Him a crushing source of destruction. For myself, I am
standing on, trusting in, and sheltered under the LORD, my Rock.