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"All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." ~Jesus Christ, in Matthew 28:18-20 |
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Cut the Worry, Increase the Praise! Think for a few moments about the beautiful Garden of Eden. Beautiful trees, plans, flowers, rivers and stream, and two very happy people that loved God and loved each other. Every evening God came from heaven to earth just to spend time with them. It was a perfect situation. That was God’s plan for man. In fact, its still the plan for the man, woman, or child that will completely sell out to God. Oh, I know there will be problems. But I also know that God will always be there with you and for you. Psalm 91
1
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
3
Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare
9
If you make the Most High your dwelling—
14
“Because he loves me,” says the LORD, “I will rescue
him;
Dr. Donald Grey Barnhouse was one of America’s great preachers. His first wife died from cancer when she was in her thirties, leaving behind three children under the age of twelve. Barnhouse chose to preach the funeral himself. What does a father tell h is motherless children at a time like that? On his way to the service, he was driving with his little family when a large truck passed then on the highway, casting a shadow over their car. Barnhouse turned to his oldest daughter who was staring sadly out the window, and asked, “Tell me, sweetheart, would you rather be run over by that truck or its shadow?” The little girl looked curiously at her father and said, “By the shadow, I guess. It can’t hurt you.” Dr. Barnhouse said quietly to the three children, “Your mother has not been overrun by death, but by the shadow of death. There is nothing to fear.” Everyone in this sanctuary this morning has suffered from the cares and trials of this life. Sometimes we feel like the truck has run over us…in reality, it was merely the shadow. The devil is our enemy, and his job is to fill our hearts with fear. The 91st Psalm shows us that there is a place in God where we can be free from all fear. We are going to look at that today. When Joshua launched his period of leadership over the Israelites as they crossed the Jordan River to enter the Promised Land, God instructed him to mediate on the scriptures night and day. If we will meditate on this powerful promise – a covenant from God – your days of worry will be over. C.H. Spurgeon wrote, “The blessings here promised are not for all believers, but for those who live in close fellowship with God. Every child of God looks towards the inner sanctuary and the mercy seat, yet all do not dwell in the most holy place; they run to it at times, and enjoy occasional approaches, but they do not habitually reside in the mysterious presence. Those who through rich grace obtain unusual and continuous communion with God, so as to abide in Christ and Christ in them, become possessors of rare and special benefits, which are missed by those who follow afar off, and grieve the Holy Spirit of God.” It appears to me that the only biblical persons that entered into this secret place are the ones that suffered – Moses, David, Simeon and Anna, Jesus and James to mention a few. St. Paul finally said, “For me to live is Christ.” In Acts 17:28 Paul said, “In Him (Christ) we live and move and have our being.” Psalm 91:2. “I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress.” The NLT (New Living Translation) says, “This I declare of the LORD: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; He is my God, and I am trusting Him.” To get the full benefit of this covenantal relationship we must totally abandon ourselves to God. I am learning, but I have not arrived! True wisdom is to take an appropriate general biblical truth and make it our own by applying our personal faith. Yes, we can read “The Lord is a refuge.” That’s just a piece of information. However, when I say from the depth of my heart, “He is my refuge” I have entered the door or God’s secret place. Now, when I am confronted with Satan’s fear and respond by saying, “I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge, and Satan, you cannot touch me,” then I have arrived at the secret place. How often do we proclaim our doubts and fears! May we learn to proclaim our faith and confidence! Now, when we declare that the Lord is our source of strength and refuge we really have to back it up by our actions. Yes, we go to the doctor. Yes, we go to the storm shelter. Yes, we buy insurance and drive carefully. But we do not life a life of fear and anxiety. Psalm 91:3. “Surely He shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler.” A fowler is one who catches birds. In this metaphor the child of God is a bird that needs protection. Like poor little birds we are apt to be lured into a trap by our enemy. However, when we dwell near to God He will not let Satan destroy us. Spurgeon wrote, “If Moses wrote this psalm he might represent the fowler as being the king of Egypt. If David penned it, he might have compared Saul to the fowler, for he, himself said that he was hunted like a partridge upon the mountains.” In reality, the author was probably referring to Satan. HYMN: NEAR TO THE HEART OF GOD
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There is a place of quiet rest,
o
O Jesus, blest Redeemer,
2.
There is a place of comfort sweet,
3.
There is a place of full release,
Never forget, your words are very powerful! God spoke the world – in fact the entire universe – into being by His words. We create faith or fear, success or failure by our words. Parents, friends, teachers all have great influence in our lives because of their words. Verse 2 – I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and fortress and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” Luke 7 tells a very powerful story about a Roman centurion who had an amazing amount of faith. The Jews were under the Roman rule, and the centurion was probably the highest ranked Roman in Capernaum, where this story takes place. The centurion had a highly-valued servant that was sick and about to die. When he heard that Jesus was in town he sent some elders of the Jews to ask the Lord to heal the servant. The elders pleaded with Jesus, “This man deserves to have you do this because he loves our nation and has built our synagogue.” That was not what the centurion had in mind! When he heard that Jesus was approaching his house, he sent some friends to say to Jesus, “Lord, don’t trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” Take note of Jesus’ response! He did not say, “What great humility!” Instead He said, “I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel.” Then the men that were sent returned to the house and found the servant well. QUESTION: How much faith do we have…as much as that Roman soldier? We are saved; we have the Holy Spirit residing in our hearts. Can we believe God when He says,
“3 Surely He
will save you from the fowler’s snare Verse 4 alludes to a mother bird protecting her young with her wings – even risking her own life. A rampart is a fortification to protect from an enemy. A shield protects from the enemies arrows. Verse 5 presents a choice. God says we are not to fear. But some folk feel obligated to be afraid. God will not override that choice! He may shake His head sadly, He may chide you, but if you want to be fearful, that’s your choice. However God does call fear sin. “Whatever is not of faith is sin.” (Romans 14:23) Verse 7 is pretty awesome. If you smile at Peter’s lack of faith when he sank while walking on water because of the big waves, how much faith would be necessary to avoid faith when 11,000 people are dying all around you? Look at it! A thousand at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, “But it will not come near you!” Note the circumstances of verses 14-16: 1. “Because he loves Me, I will rescue him.” 2. “I will protect him because he acknowledges My name.” 3. “He will call upon Me, and I will answer him.” 4. TROUBLES HAPPEN! – But God promises to be with us and deliver us. 5. God says that He will deliver us and honor us. 6. Finally, He will satisfy us with long life. Salvation is a free gift. But to be an overcoming, dynamic Child of God we have to be obedient! RESPONSIBILITY Ephesians 6:10, “Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.” This does not mean, “Be strong in your power!” (Kenneth Hagin’s story)
USS Akron (ZRS-4) On May 11, 1932 a crowd of 10,000 people assembled to welcome the world’s largest dirigible, the U.S. Navy’s $8 million USS Akron, to Camp Kearney, San Diego, CA. The mooring appeared to be successful, then a ring that held one of the two mooring cables snapped and the 785-foot airship started to lift. Two groups of sailors holding landing ropes attached to the cables attempted to guide the Akron back to its mooring mast, but strong winds buffeted the giant dirigible, and it broke loose, lifting many of the 200 sailors ten to twenty feet off the ground. Some were injured as they fell. Then only three men dangled from the 300-foot cable as the Akron continued to ascend. According to the newspaper accounts at the time hysteria prevailed. Women fainted, officers wept, Enlisted men ran around wildly, unable to help the three desperate men clinging to the cable. Soon two of the men, unable to hold on any longer fell to their deaths. Farther up in the twisted lines, the third sailor, a 19-year-old enlisted man from Oklahoma, braced his feet in some wooden handgrips and quickly lashed other lines attached to the cable around his body. He just kept holding on as the Akron rose to 2,000 feet. The horrified onlookers thought that his strength would fail at any moment and he, too, would fall to his death. Thirty minutes passed…and they saw the man moving – he was alive! The winds kept the pilot from landing the airship. Two hours later the crew inside the ship cautiously hauled him inside. Later he was asked, “How did you hold on so long?” He responded, “I didn’t hold on. I wrapped the ropes around me; they were holding me.” This is what God means when He tells us to be strong in the Lord. Don’t walk in your strength. Use God’s strength. There is plenty to go around!
Sunday, August 21, 2010 |
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Scriptures taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL
VERSION (NIV).
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