“Give us help from trouble: for vain is the help of man. Through God we shall do valiantly: for he it is that shall tread down our enemies” (Psalm 108:12, 13 KJV).
“Help” is the desperate often audible cry of someone whose personal resources have failed or been exhausted and they need someone to come along side them and use their resources to give them strength and support. Help is something human beings are good at. We help the weak and defenseless, and the elderly and the poor and the homeless and those who can’t help themselves.
We have all asked for help at some time or another and, hopefully, we’ve helped others at one time or another. We know those who will gladly and unreservedly help us at any time when we ask. We also know those who will not help us or, if they do, they do so grudgingly.
We need help with a lot more than just fixing the car or repairing the house or paying our bills or moving or any of a dozen other projects around the house or at work. We need help with life. Life can get very difficult when we make the wrong choices. We need help making the right choices. We can do bad all by ourselves, but when we begin to suffer the bad consequences of our bad choices and want to change, we usually ask for help.
A lot of people need help, want help and will ask for help, but will not receive help because, to be helped, they must change. Help means changing from the way that got us into trouble to a way that gets us out of trouble and keeps us out of trouble. Most people aren’t willing to make that change, and so they stay in trouble. Change and help are synonymous. When we repent change and help will come.
Man can help us with just about everything. But man can’t help us when it comes to salvation. Some religions are in the business of supposedly helping the sinner get saved by performing certain works and rituals. But these works and rituals avail nothing and help only to mislead.
Man is helpless when it comes to salvation from sin and Hell. But God showed mercy and love to helpless man and gave Jesus Christ to do and finish all the work necessary for the sinner’s salvation. Now, all it takes is faith in Christ’s finished work of redemption for an otherwise helpless sinner to be saved.
Once a person becomes a Christian they have God (Psalm 121; Hebrews 13:6), Christ (Acts 26:22; Hebrews 4:15, 16), the Spirit (Romans 8:26), angels (Daniel 10:13; Hebrew 1:14) and then other Christians to help them (Acts 16:9; Galatians 6:1, 2; 1 Thessalonians 5:14, 15). There are some Christians who are gifted at helping others and have the gift of “helps” (1 Corinthians 12:28). When the preacher preaches the Word of God, he is helping us to live our lives in such a way as to honor God and be a witness to the lost world (Acts 20:28; 2 Timothy 4:2, 3).
We will always need help in this imperfect world. And God’s help is always available and always on time. “This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his trouble” (Psalm 34:6).