Shelter of the Most High
John Brindley opens his sermon by explaining that about three weeks prior, while thumbing through the Psalms, God led him to Psalm 91 and kept him there. What initially struck him as a passage that seemed to simply "pump sunshine" to believers — suggesting that Christians will be shielded from all of life's difficulties — quickly revealed itself to be something far deeper. John is clear from the outset that most of what Psalm 91 describes operates in the spiritual realm, not necessarily the physical, and that it is not reserved for those who are "super spiritual." It is a word for every believer who is striving to walk with God, even imperfectly.
One of the central themes John returns to throughout the sermon is the idea of being in the shadow of the Almighty. He makes the practical observation that to be in someone's shadow, you have to be close to them. Spiritual distance from God means spiritual exposure. The way to draw close to God, John explains, is through His Son Jesus Christ, reminding the congregation of Jesus' own words: "No man comes to the Father but through Me" (John 14:6). He also highlights the richness of God's names found in the opening verses of Psalm 91 — Elyon (Most High), Shaddai (Almighty), Yahweh (Lord), and Elohei (my God) — and encourages the congregation to know these names, because knowing someone's name is the beginning of truly knowing them.
John draws a vivid and tender picture from Psalm 91:4, which says, "He will cover you with his feathers. He will shelter you with his wings." He describes watching a mother quail gather her tiny chicks under her wings at the sound of a hawk call — and notes that a mother bird would die for her young. The parallel to Jesus is unmistakable: Christ has already covered believers in His blood and has already died for them, so that they might be protected from the evil one. This protection, John is careful to say, does not mean Christians will be spared from hardship in this life, but it does mean they are shielded from being conquered by evil.
To illustrate that God's protection can also break into the physical realm, John tells the story of Charles Spurgeon, who in 1854 was serving a church in England during the Asiatic cholera epidemic. Spurgeon conducted well over 100 funerals in the span of roughly a year, and the weight of it had worn him down to the point where he feared he himself was dying. Walking home after yet another funeral, he spotted a verse written in a shoemaker's window — drawn from Psalm 91 — that spoke of making the Lord one's refuge and of no plague coming near one's dwelling. God used that shoemaker's window to speak directly to Spurgeon's broken spirit. He was refreshed, he continued to minister faithfully through the epidemic, and he never fell ill. John uses this story to show that while we shouldn't presume upon God's physical protection, there are times when He sovereignly extends it — and it is all according to His perfect knowledge and will.
John also weaves in personal testimony, sharing how a fall in his attic on the Fourth of July left him with a severely torn rotator cuff, sidelining him from the fly fishing he loves and teaches. Rather than simply lamenting the injury, John heard God speak clearly to him: he had been losing his focus, allowing other things — even good things — to edge God out of first place. The injury became an invitation to get back into the Word with greater seriousness and intentionality. He encourages the congregation with the same challenge: make time for God, get up earlier if you have to, because that is how you get into His shadow, under His wings, and within His protection.
John anchors the sermon's conclusion in Psalm 91:10, which declares, "No evil will conquer you. No plague will come near your home." He makes the point with striking clarity: evil can deceive the believer, it can lie to them, it can trouble parts of their life — but it can never conquer them. The reason is simple and powerful: what belongs to Jesus, evil cannot conquer. For the enemy to conquer a Christian, he would first have to conquer Jesus, and as John puts it plainly, "He ain't gonna do that." When Satan tempted Jesus and suggested He throw Himself from a great height, Jesus simply quoted scripture back at him — and the devil left. That same authority belongs to every believer who stands in Christ.
John closes with a pastoral tenderness, acknowledging that the congregation is walking through a particularly painful season, including the sudden and unexpected loss of Adam and Ashley. He reminds them that while the tragedy caught everyone off guard, it did not catch God by surprise. He is still in control. For those who are hurting, struggling, or questioning, John's encouragement is simple and direct: get under the protection of Jesus, give it to God, and take comfort in who He is and where He is. Evil will never have the final word over those who belong to Christ.