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Back to Sermons Index Back to Home Page 9th April 2006 PMTRUST OUR STRONG AND LOVING GOD! Pastor Colin Meadows Psalm 62:1-12
Ø Back to basics: Sometimes we make life too complicated. This applies as well to our faith journey with God. Rather we need to get back to the basics. Jesus often spoke about being like children when it came to faith. Will look at passages in the Bible that refer to ‘one thing’ statements and seek to unpack what is said. Here is our second such statement… Psalm 62:11 “One thing God has spoken…” What is the one thing mentioned here? To realise that our God is strong and that He is loving and as such we can have confidence as we put our complete trust in Him. Psalm 62:11-12 “…that you, O God, are strong, and that you O Lord, are loving.” In seeking to get back to the basics of living, let us focus on these truths tonight. Ø Remember God’s strength: God is the all powerful, strong, mighty God. Wonderful words of strength are used in this psalm. Psalm 62:2,7 “He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken….He is my mighty rock, my refuge.”” These words speak of safety and protection, of strength, stability, security. The word is used of God’s divine right to rule and intervene in the lives of people, especially in a redemptive sense. Do you feel that your world is shaking at the moment? Perhaps you are OK, but you have family members or friends for whom life is very uncertain. I encourage you to remember that our God is a strong God. He is able to keep you no matter what the circumstances you face. He delights to intervene to bring about his redemptive purposes. The doxology at the end of Jude highlights this wonderful truth. Jude 24 “To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy – to the only God our Saviour be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.” Our God wishes to intervene in our lives to bring about his work of reconstruction. Are we willing and ready to receive such intervention? He wishes for us to trust him as he works in our lives. Yes, God is able to keep us and mould us because he is the all powerful creator God of the universe. Ø Remember God’s love: God is not just strong and powerful. He is also loving in every aspect of his being. He has incredible compassion and concern for all people. The word used for this love or mercy is described as ‘one of the most significant theological terms in the Hebrew Scriptures’. This love speaks of God’s deep devotion to his people. It is translated variously as kindness, mercy, steadfast love or loving kindness. It highlights God’s irrevocable commitment to the covenant he has entered into with his loved ones. It speaks further of his loyalty and faithfulness. As one commentator noted “it is difficult, if not impossible, to precisely convey the full meaning of the term with just one English word or phrase.” God, in other words, is utterly committed to the relationship he has with us as his people! He explains this when he chose the children of Israel. Deut 7:7 “The LORD did not set his affection on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples. But it was because the LORD loved you…” Why has God chosen us to know him? Because of his love and nothing else. We are not smarter or stronger or better than other people. God has showered us with his love just because that is his nature! Yes, God is all powerful and God is all loving. And it is in Christ that we see fully these truths most clearly displayed. Ø Jesus demonstrates God’s strength and love: We are confronted with the incredible strength and loving kindness of God as we look at Christ. Jesus firstly is the one who has brought all things into being by his power. John 1:3 “Through him (Jesus) all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” Jesus is the one who clearly demonstrates the love of God, even before we asked for his help. Romans 5:8 “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” John 3:16,17 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” Jesus demonstrated the power and love of God in numerous ways. One was as he spoke of his disciples as being sheep in his care. John 10:27ff “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is great than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one. “ These are words of incredible power but also of love. They speak of a compassionate caring for those who are helpless. Let us respond with child like trust in Christ, the one who is the all powerful, all loving Lord. Then we will sense God’s blessing on our lives. Psalm 62:12 “…Surely you will reward each person according to what he has done.” The reward of a person who has put their trust in Christ is to live secure in the knowledge of his love and strength. But I have a question for you… What have you done about the incredible love of our strong God? Have you responded in faith, submitting to Him as Lord and Master? I read recently that ‘we will trust God to the degree we know that we are loved by Him.” Are you aware of the incredible love that God has for you? Let us trust in the all powerful, all loving God. Let’s draw these things to a conclusion… Ø Remember this one thing: Psalm 62:11-12 “One thing God has spoken, two things I have heard: that you, O God, are strong, and that you O Lord, are loving.” Let us trust Christ in the light of who He is, the all powerful, all loving God!!
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