The Lord Is My Shepherd
Psalm 23
Dr. Edwin P. Elliott
I. God Takes Care of His People
A. The God of sovereign grace does for His people what a shepherd does for his sheep; God protects from danger and supplies needs. “A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.” (Psalm 23:1)
1. David spoke of the shepherd’s work from his own experience. “He chose David also his servant, and took him from the sheepfolds: From following the ewes great with young he brought him to feed Jacob his people, and Israel his inheritance.” (Psalm 78:70-71)
2. Jesus is the good shepherd. “I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.” (John 10:11) “He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.” (Isaiah 40:11)
B. There are other shepherds who are not good for the sheep. “But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep. The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep.” (John 10:12-13)
C. God provides for His people what they need. “He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.” (Psalm 23:2) “Better is little with the fear of the LORD than great treasure and trouble therewith. Better is a dinner of herbs where love is, than a stalled ox and hatred therewith.” (Proverbs 15:16-17)
D. Sheep take comfort in the knowledge that the shepherd will not abandon them or leave them to the penalty of their private adventures. “He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.” (Psalm 23:3) “I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek thy servant; for I do not forget thy commandments.” (Psalm 119:176)
II. God Always Takes Care of His People
A. Life’s greatest terrors shrink as a believer grasps God’s protective interest in His own. “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.” (Psalm 23:4)
B. God does not leave His sheep unattended to face their enemies. “A Psalm of David. The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell. Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear: though war should rise against me, in this will I be confident. One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple.” (Psalm 27:1-4)
C. As believers get to know the Savior, all the arguments for fear and worry fade. “What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31)
D. Pagans fear death but believers view it as the entrance into perfection. “For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 15:53-57)
III. God Never Stops Taking Care of His People
A. David hints at the eternal banquet with God when believers will be finally and entirely vindicated; the good times are coming. “Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.” (Psalm 23:5)
B. Christ guaranteed the good times in the Lord’s Supper. “Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.” (John 6:53-56)
C. Eternal joy waits for those who trust in God. “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.” (Psalm 23:6)
D. When human resources fail, the eternal ones appear. “My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.” (Psalm 73:26)
E. Never let the present stand in the way of the eternal. “For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” (2 Corinthians 5:1) “For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better:” (Philippians 1:23)
Saturday, January 5, 2008
I Will Have Mercy
Hosea 1:1-11; Matthew 26:17-30 / Exodus 20:1-17
Dr. Edwin P. Elliott
I. Apostasy from God Is Spiritual Adultery
A. Hosea preached across 80 years and primarily in Israel, the Northern Kingdom. “The word of the LORD that came unto Hosea, the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel.” (Hosea 1:1) [Hosea means salvation.]
B. God directed Hosea to marry an unfaithful woman who would eventually illustrate Heaven’s problem with spiritual unfaithfulness. “The beginning of the word of the LORD by Hosea. And the LORD said to Hosea, Go, take unto thee a wife of whoredoms and children of whoredoms: for the land hath committed great whoredom, departing from the LORD.” (Hosea 1:2) [Having focused on material prosperity rather than inner integrity, Israel was now less than 30 years from national destruction.]
C. Suffering must be turned to good use according to God. “Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.” (2 Corinthians 1:4) “And whether we be afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer: or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation.” (2 Corinthians 1:6)
D. The Savior intimately understands betrayal. “He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.” (Isaiah 53:3)
II. God Dealt with Unfaithfulness Personally
A. Hosea did as he was told and experienced what God encountered in Israel’s apostasy. “So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim; which conceived, and bare him a son. And the LORD said unto him, Call his name Jezreel; for yet a little while, and I will avenge the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu, and will cause to cease the kingdom of the house of Israel. And it shall come to pass at that day, that I will break the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel.” (Hosea 1:3-5)
1. Jezreel called to mind the tragic judicial murder of Naboth. “And it came to pass after these things, that Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard, which was in Jezreel, hard by the palace of Ahab king of Samaria.” (1 Kings 21:1) “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” (Isaiah 5:20)
2. Evil ripples across the generations like a pebble tossed in a pond. “So Jehu slew all that remained of the house of Ahab in Jezreel, and all his great men, and his kinsfolks, and his priests, until he left him none remaining.” (2 Kings 10:11)
B. Hosea then learned what God intended for Judah. “And she conceived again, and bare a daughter. And God said unto him, Call her name Loruhamah: for I will no more have mercy upon the house of Israel; but I will utterly take them away. But I will have mercy upon the house of Judah, and will save them by the LORD their God, and will not save them by bow, nor by sword, nor by battle, by horses, nor by horsemen.” (Hosea 1:6-7)
C. Just as adultery ravages the marriage covenant, apostasy repudiates the heavenly covenant. “Now when she had weaned Loruhamah, she conceived, and bare a son. Then said God, Call his name Loammi: for ye are not my people, and I will not be your God.” (Hosea 1:8-9)
III. Seek Heaven’s Mercy
A. God refuses to accept disaster; restoration will come. “Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered; and it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people, there it shall be said unto them, Ye are the sons of the living God.” (Hosea 1:10)
B. All God’s people will be gathered into one holy people; the Holy One Himself shall gather a church from every people, tongue, tribe, and nation. “Then shall the children of Judah and the children of Israel be gathered together, and appoint themselves one head, and they shall come up out of the land: for great shall be the day of Jezreel.” (Hosea 1:11) “Then said the LORD unto me, Go yet, love a woman beloved of her friend, yet an adulteress, according to the love of the LORD toward the children of Israel, who look to other gods, and love flagons of wine.” (Hosea 3:1)
C. Grace is greater than sin; God is willing to restore the unfaithful. “In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given for an inheritance unto your fathers. But I said, How shall I put thee among the children, and give thee a pleasant land, a goodly heritage of the hosts of nations? and I said, Thou shalt call me, My father; and shalt not turn away from me.” (Jeremiah 3:18-19)
D. The Messiah cleanses His people. “And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:” (Romans 11:26) “And I said unto her, Thou shalt abide for me many days; thou shalt not play the harlot, and thou shalt not be for another man: so will I also be for thee. For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim: Afterward shall the children of Israel return, and seek the LORD their God, and David their king; and shall fear the LORD and his goodness in the latter days.” (Hosea 3:3-5)
E. Come to the Lord’s Table that the cleansing and healing may begin now. “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” (Isaiah 1:18)
Hosea 1:1-11; Matthew 26:17-30 / Exodus 20:1-17
Dr. Edwin P. Elliott
I. Apostasy from God Is Spiritual Adultery
A. Hosea preached across 80 years and primarily in Israel, the Northern Kingdom. “The word of the LORD that came unto Hosea, the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel.” (Hosea 1:1) [Hosea means salvation.]
B. God directed Hosea to marry an unfaithful woman who would eventually illustrate Heaven’s problem with spiritual unfaithfulness. “The beginning of the word of the LORD by Hosea. And the LORD said to Hosea, Go, take unto thee a wife of whoredoms and children of whoredoms: for the land hath committed great whoredom, departing from the LORD.” (Hosea 1:2) [Having focused on material prosperity rather than inner integrity, Israel was now less than 30 years from national destruction.]
C. Suffering must be turned to good use according to God. “Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.” (2 Corinthians 1:4) “And whether we be afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer: or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation.” (2 Corinthians 1:6)
D. The Savior intimately understands betrayal. “He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.” (Isaiah 53:3)
II. God Dealt with Unfaithfulness Personally
A. Hosea did as he was told and experienced what God encountered in Israel’s apostasy. “So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim; which conceived, and bare him a son. And the LORD said unto him, Call his name Jezreel; for yet a little while, and I will avenge the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu, and will cause to cease the kingdom of the house of Israel. And it shall come to pass at that day, that I will break the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel.” (Hosea 1:3-5)
1. Jezreel called to mind the tragic judicial murder of Naboth. “And it came to pass after these things, that Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard, which was in Jezreel, hard by the palace of Ahab king of Samaria.” (1 Kings 21:1) “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” (Isaiah 5:20)
2. Evil ripples across the generations like a pebble tossed in a pond. “So Jehu slew all that remained of the house of Ahab in Jezreel, and all his great men, and his kinsfolks, and his priests, until he left him none remaining.” (2 Kings 10:11)
B. Hosea then learned what God intended for Judah. “And she conceived again, and bare a daughter. And God said unto him, Call her name Loruhamah: for I will no more have mercy upon the house of Israel; but I will utterly take them away. But I will have mercy upon the house of Judah, and will save them by the LORD their God, and will not save them by bow, nor by sword, nor by battle, by horses, nor by horsemen.” (Hosea 1:6-7)
C. Just as adultery ravages the marriage covenant, apostasy repudiates the heavenly covenant. “Now when she had weaned Loruhamah, she conceived, and bare a son. Then said God, Call his name Loammi: for ye are not my people, and I will not be your God.” (Hosea 1:8-9)
III. Seek Heaven’s Mercy
A. God refuses to accept disaster; restoration will come. “Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered; and it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people, there it shall be said unto them, Ye are the sons of the living God.” (Hosea 1:10)
B. All God’s people will be gathered into one holy people; the Holy One Himself shall gather a church from every people, tongue, tribe, and nation. “Then shall the children of Judah and the children of Israel be gathered together, and appoint themselves one head, and they shall come up out of the land: for great shall be the day of Jezreel.” (Hosea 1:11) “Then said the LORD unto me, Go yet, love a woman beloved of her friend, yet an adulteress, according to the love of the LORD toward the children of Israel, who look to other gods, and love flagons of wine.” (Hosea 3:1)
C. Grace is greater than sin; God is willing to restore the unfaithful. “In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given for an inheritance unto your fathers. But I said, How shall I put thee among the children, and give thee a pleasant land, a goodly heritage of the hosts of nations? and I said, Thou shalt call me, My father; and shalt not turn away from me.” (Jeremiah 3:18-19)
D. The Messiah cleanses His people. “And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:” (Romans 11:26) “And I said unto her, Thou shalt abide for me many days; thou shalt not play the harlot, and thou shalt not be for another man: so will I also be for thee. For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim: Afterward shall the children of Israel return, and seek the LORD their God, and David their king; and shall fear the LORD and his goodness in the latter days.” (Hosea 3:3-5)
E. Come to the Lord’s Table that the cleansing and healing may begin now. “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” (Isaiah 1:18)
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