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Is GOD our Refuge?
by Reji Thomas, Master of Divinity Second Year
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While medi- tating
on our College’s theme for the year, I was captivated by this question: What does it person- ally mean to have ‘GOD’ as my refuge and strength? Often our response to the question would be a verbal diarrhea revolv- ing around the exegesis of the words ‘God’ and ‘refuge’. We boastfully claim to know who our God is and definitely know, what ‘refuge’ means. But do we truly fathom the depth of this confessional statement made by sons of Korah in Psalms 46?
To deflate our claims of know- ing God and to make my question clearer, I would like to draw your attention to a very familiar incident in our society . Whenever a spoiled brat of a politician or a top bureau- crat is caught by cops for any crime, the first reaction from the perpetra- tor is... “Do you know who my father is?” The answer to the question is not confined to merely knowing the name of the father but goes beyond by comprehending the authority and power of the concerned person .
Now, let us consider another in- cident but from the Bible . When the people of Israel reached the de- sert of Paran, twelve spies were sent ahead of them to explore the prom- ised land . Ten of them brought bad
report and discouraged the Israelites saying, “We can’t attack those peo- ple; they are stronger than we are . We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them” Numbers 13:31,33 . Only two of them, who saw the same reality as others, came back and could boldly declare, “...do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us . Their protec- tion is removed from them, and the LORD is with us; do not fear them” Numbers 14:9 . Now, who among the twelve knew their God, and who did not? The answer is simple, all of them knew who their God is . They all knew YHWH as the God of their patriarchs . Every individual among the Israelites personally witnessed God’s might, de- liverance and provisions throughout their journey out of Egypt . But look at the disparity between the response of the two groups . The fact is, only Joshua and Caleb comprehended the sovereignty of the Lord, and it was equally reflected in their response amidst the crisis .
The present COVID-19 pandemic crisis demands a similar hopeful and encouraging response from the be- lieving community, but many among us have been left disheartened and de- spondent . We are expected to respond like Caleb and Joshua and strengthen the hopeless and grieving community around us, but today, we ourselves are in need of encouragement . This makes my question more relevant . Do we truly understand what it means to have God as our refuge and do we truly comprehend, who our God is? If