Title: Words of October 29th
Contents
God is my shepherd (Psalm 23:1-6)
Dear all! Today, our church prepared the 2nd Invitational Sunday of 2006 as the Chrysanthemum Flower New Life Festival and welcomed you all. In our church, we are praying for you by calling your name with the heart that you believe in Jesus, receive God's blessing, and live a life of faith together. Thank you for being able to worship together with these precious people today. This morning, while looking at Psalm 23, I would like to share a word about “God who is our shepherd”.
Psalm 23 is David's work. At the end of his life, David wrote this psalm as a confession of faith as he looked back on his past life. David was born the youngest son of Jesse in Bethlehem and spent his youth as a shepherd tending sheep. So David knows the relationship between the sheep and the shepherd better than anyone. Sheep are happy when they find a good shepherd. David said in verse 1, “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” Almighty Jehovah God! Jehovah God, who created, possesses, and provides the heavens and the earth and all things! Jehovah God, who is rich in love and mercy! What does this Jehovah God lack to be my shepherd?
I. green pastures resting waters
A sheep is satisfied as long as there is green pasture and resting waters. Wherever we go in our country, there are dense forests and green fields. Water flows in every valley, and in some places there are springs of waves. A truly beautiful land, blessed land There are few places as beautiful as this, wherever you go in the world to Mt. Kumsugang. Psalm 23 is set in Palestine. A place where it does not rain often A place where water is scarce because there is little precipitation. Most of the country is desert and wilderness. In a place like this, green pastures and still waters are very precious.
Everyone! Isn't this world we live in like a wilderness and a desert? However, when Jehovah God becomes our shepherd, our living environment like a wilderness and desert becomes green pastures and waters of resting places. Isaiah 41:17 says that God makes springs spring up in the wilderness, and God makes pools of water and rivers flow. Then the wilderness and desert will become green pastures and waters of rest. Dear all! As God is our shepherd in this world like a wilderness and a desert, we pray that our homes, workplaces, and our country will become green pastures and still waters.
II. path of soul revival
① Soul Resuscitation - No one is 100% healthy in this world. Everyone has one or two diseases. Still, I am living my life without a hitch. Even if I have a disability in one part of my body, it's a little uncomfortable, but I'm living well. On the contrary, there are many who have become great because of that disability. But if a person's soul is sick, it's a big deal. So God revives the heart and soul. This is a double blessing. The Bible says, "When the soul prospers, all things prosper, and thus the body also becomes healthy."
② Guide to the path of righteousness - How rough is this world? The world is full of temptations and it is easy to fall into an unrighteous way. A few days ago, there was a report on the news that he had killed his niece and son's mother this time after living for several years for murdering his own brother. It's such a cruel world. It is a big deal to say that there are 3 million people who are addicted to gambling in Korea. Also, how many people have become delinquents because they can't escape the temptation of drugs? Also, how many people have lost their lives because they can't escape the temptation to drink alcohol? How many people do business by collecting money in unjust ways? However, the wealth and power he gained along the way will eventually become a boomerang and bring great woe to himself. Everyone! If Jehovah God is my shepherd, he will protect me from all temptations and from all unrighteous ways. May you live a glorious life on a righteous path.
Ⅲ. no harm
David's life was like walking through the valley of the shadow of death. How many valleys of death must a Bethlehem shepherd have passed before he became king of a nation? In addition, Palestine is geographically surrounded by great powers, so it has always been the valley of the shadow of death with the threat of war. But David said he was not afraid of harm. It is because God is with you and comforts you. Considering the current situation on the Korean Peninsula, it seems like the valley of the shadow of death. I visited the 2nd tunnel a few days ago and there was a slogan, "The gunfire has stopped, but the war is not over".
The South and North are not at the end of the war, but in a state of ceasefire. We now have nuclear bombs. The OPCON is returned, the ROK-U.S. Combined Forces Command is dismantled, and security is insecure. Everyone! The land we live in is truly like the valley of the shadow of death. But when our God is with us, we are safe. In Isaiah 4:5-6, Almighty God protects God's people by pitching a tent. He protected me from the heat of the day and the cold of the night, and protected me from the rain and wind of tribulation. Everyone! I pray that God will be the shepherd and be with you, protect you, comfort you, and protect you from this blessing.
IV. my cup is overflowing
The blessing of overflowing my cup means a contented life. Are you satisfied with your life today? The famous American actress Marilyn Monroe made this confession. “I have everything a woman could have. I am young and beautiful. I have a lot of money and I am not hungry for love. I receive hundreds of pen letters every day. I am healthy and lack nothing. But for some reason I am empty. . Anxiety for no reason is rushing in like a tide." After confessing this, she eventually committed suicide one night in 1962, leaving a will that said, "My life is like a closed beach due to a wave of waves." look. A life without God is not happy even if you have all the conditions for happiness. Because man was created as a spiritual being. Therefore, it cannot be filled with anything other than God. But when God is with us, we are happy when Jesus is with us. It becomes a life of satisfaction as if the cup overflows.
Poet Song Myung-hee was born with cerebral palsy due to a doctor's mistake. Who else is so unhappy? But when God became his shepherd and Jesus Christ was with him, a beautiful poem sprung up in his heart. Everyone! True happiness does not consist in having more or less. It's not a matter of being healthy or a little weak. It does not depend on any environment. If God is our shepherd, we can be content and happy in any case.
Ⅴ. forever in the house of God
A young man in his 40s was diagnosed with liver cancer at the hospital with a life span of six months. How amazing would you be? We're all the same because we're all on the same side. At some point you have to leave this world. This is the existence of life. The famous French atheist Voltaire argued that "there is no God." Of course, there is neither heaven nor hell. He even ran a printing shop and published a book called "There is no God." "In 100 years, there will be no foolish person on this planet who believes in the existence of God," he assured.
But when this Voltaire died, he grabbed the doctor and said, "If you let me live for another six months, I will give you half of my fortune. Now I am going to hell. Hell, hell, hell ...." The nurse next to me asked, "Didn't you say you don't believe in hell?" Voltaire said, "I don't want to believe in hell either. But there is hell in front of me. I'm going to hell now." a time-limited life! The day we must leave this world is sure to come, and the question is where we will go. Hell is a scary thing. But God, who is our shepherd, not only takes care of God's children with grace and love while they live in this world, but also receives them into the heaven of Jehovah's house on the day they leave this world, so that they can live there forever.
Dear all! When Jehovah God becomes our shepherd, He leads us to green pastures and still waters, to the path of righteousness to renew our souls, to protect us from harm even in the valley of the shadow of death, and to live a life of satisfaction as if the cup overflowed. . He makes us enjoy eternal life in the heavenly kingdom of the house of Jehovah God. I hope you will receive and believe in Jesus Christ in your heart. I pray that Jehovah God will receive this blessing as my shepherd.