One of the readings for
yesterday was taken from Psalm 23. For nearly thirty centuries the twenty-third
Psalm has been one of the most beloved passages in the whole Bible. There are
only 118 words in this great Psalm yet these 118 words go to the very depths of
our beings and form a rock foundation to sustain us in hours of difficulty and
trial. The opening line says, "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want."
Mankind has sought for security down through the ages. A child stands close to
his mother and finds security in her. All through life we strive for security
in so many different ways. We guard our health; we save for old age; we take
out insurance. We long for security, but this passage emphasizes that God is
our real security.
"The Lord is my shepherd," therefore "I shall not want." How very true this is. Even before we exist, God was aware of our needs and provided for them. He knew we would be hungry, so he provided the seasons of the year and the productivity of the soil to make possible the growth of food. He knew that we would be cold, so he caused to be embedded in the earth great areas of coal and vast storehouses of gas that we might heat our homes and warm our bodies.
We are reminded of the passage in Matthew 6:8 where Jesus says, "Your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before ye ask him." There is another passage in the Psalms in which David says, "I have been young, and now am I old; (Yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his seed begging bread.") (Psalm 37: 25). This is another way of saying that God will take care of us.
"The Lord is my shepherd," therefore "I shall not want." How very true this is. Even before we exist, God was aware of our needs and provided for them. He knew we would be hungry, so he provided the seasons of the year and the productivity of the soil to make possible the growth of food. He knew that we would be cold, so he caused to be embedded in the earth great areas of coal and vast storehouses of gas that we might heat our homes and warm our bodies.
We are reminded of the passage in Matthew 6:8 where Jesus says, "Your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before ye ask him." There is another passage in the Psalms in which David says, "I have been young, and now am I old; (Yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his seed begging bread.") (Psalm 37: 25). This is another way of saying that God will take care of us.
In the Sermon on the
Mount Jesus dealt with so many things that we need to know about and among them
he dealt with our anxiety. "Be not anxious for your life, what ye shall eat, or
what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not life
more than food, and the body more than raiment? Behold the birds of the heaven,
that they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; and your
heavenly Father feedeth them. Are not ye of much more value than they? Consider
the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin; yet
I say unto you, that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of
these... Be not therefore anxious for the morrow; for the morrow will be anxious
for itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof."5 (Matt. 6: 25, 26,
28, 34). We would add to these passages one from Paul’s pen. Philippians 4:19:
"And my God shall supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in
Christ Jesus." In other words, as David expressed it so long ago, the Lord is
our Shepherd and therefore we shall not want.
There are three simple words which can summarize the message of this great Psalm. They are: contentment ,courage and confidence. Contentment is registered in the opening line, "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want," Courage is shown in the middle of the passage as David says, "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil." Finally, confidence is seen in the concluding lines, "Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever."
There are three simple words which can summarize the message of this great Psalm. They are: contentment ,courage and confidence. Contentment is registered in the opening line, "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want," Courage is shown in the middle of the passage as David says, "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil." Finally, confidence is seen in the concluding lines, "Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever."
In
Christ,
Brown
Friday May,
2012
Television
Outreach
Time Warner
Cable Channel 4
Time 7:00 PM
Saturday Evening
Worship Service:
Location: First United Methodist
Church
53 McKinley
Avenue
Endicott,
NY
Sponsored
by: Union Center United Methodist Church
Time: 6:00
PM gathering for Coffee Fellowship
6:30 PM Worship Service
Date:
Saturday, May 5. 2012
Speaker: Rev Brown Naik
Music Laureen
Naik
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