Title: God Who Protects (Psalm 23:4)
Contents
God who protects
Psalm 23:4
During the four seasons, when is the most depressing season for humans? It's called autumn. The reason for this is that when I look at the falling leaves, I think of life. I think of death as I think, ‘Like those falling leaves, my life will end someday.’ Seen in this way, emotions are a privilege that only humans have, but sometimes they are also an unavoidable pain. When you see the fallen leaves and think of it as death, another emotion comes to you. that is fear. It is said that the greatest fear among human emotions is the fear of death.
In general, there are several reasons why people fear death.
The first is the fear of loss. Death is scary because it takes away everything. It takes away loved ones, time and talent. And all possibilities and dreams are taken away. For those who watch death, it is a moment of losing a loved one, but for those who die, it is a moment of loss where everything is lost. The fear of loss is the fear of death.
The third fear of death is loneliness. that he must die alone. The moment of death is the time when you should feel the loneliness the most on the path of life. No one can go down this road with you. Neither my loving husband, nor my wife, nor my parents, no matter how much they care about their children, cannot walk this path for me. We may hold hands with our loved ones at the last moments of our lives, but at the moment our breath stops, each of our souls must walk each path, led by an angel, before God. The fact that there are no companions in the valley of death is what makes death so terrifying. Even at this time, you will never know how many people refuse to die, struggling with the fear of loss, the fear of pain, and the fear of loneliness.
But, gentlemen, none of us who are here today are exempt from this death. Just like the saying that living day by day means running towards death, it is a pre-determined order and an irresistible principle. How would you react if your daily life was like walking through a valley in the shadow of death? But that doesn't mean you can't live your life in fear every day. It is far more impossible to sit in despair. We must be wise in the face of death and fear.
In today's Bible text, David describes our life as we run toward death as “a passage through the valley of the shadow of death.” But David tells us something important. There is reason to fear and suffer as you walk through this valley of death. How can you not fear harm in this valley? The answer is testified in today's text: "You are with me; Your rod and your staff comfort me."
I hope you do not misunderstand David's confession that he is not afraid of harm when he passes through the valley of death today. This does not mean that there is no harm in the valley of our lives that believe in God, nor does it mean that there is no fear. There may be harm, and there are certainly fears, but they can be overcome. It reveals that we can overcome with absolute faith that God is with us and rely on.
Neither do we have eyes to look forward. Myopia. My eyesight was not open. They are not sensitive to any senses, so they are dull. So now I can't see anything in my eyes, so I'm anxious and afraid. But remember, everyone. The water I need is only given through this place. It has not yet come to my senses, but it is only through this gloomy valley that you can get fat food.
The reason we should not be afraid of harm to the life we pass through the valley of the shadow of death is that God is with us and surrounds us with rods and sticks to protect us. A cane and a stick are similar in that they are both made of wood, but their use is distinctly different. This was a pointed knife. It was a tool to defeat predators approaching to harm the sheep. Like a shepherd who guards the sheep with it, God guides and protects us through the valley of the shadow of death with a staff in one hand holding me, a weapon that protects me, and a staff that guides me in the other.
Dear saints!
Please follow his voice. God knows a better place than my destination. The failure in my life is not because there is no running water in front of my eyes, nor because there is no form in front of my eyes, but because it has made God the Shepherd disappear from our dull eyes, smells, and senses. No matter how green there are, if you lose God before your eyes, life is a despair. Please sing David's confession today: "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff comfort me."