STILLNESS, Part
2
Psalm 23
|
THESIS: God
wants us enjoy stillness in our lives and confronts our normal routines of
life with a challenge to come with Him to lie down and rest. |
I. REASONS FOR A LIFE OF FRANTIC ACTIVITY
A. WE HAVE BECOME ADDICTED TO ACTION.
B. WE ARE AFRAID OF STILLNESS.
C. WE have ACCOMMODATED OUR CULTURE.
D. WE HAVE ABANDONED THE SHEPHERD
II. RATIONALE FOR A PLACE OF QUIET REST
--When we look at things from God’s perspective, we
can understand His rationale for making us lie down in green pastures, for
making our lives so full and rich that we want for nothing.
A. GOD ORDERS IT.
--When David selected his words, it is interesting
that he chose to emphasize the fact that the Shepherd has to make the sheep lie down.
--Knowing that all of us like sheep have gone and
continue to go astray, God has to enforce rest upon us, to make us lie down.
--The Lord, knowing our hearts and the conditions of
our lives, has to, establish the right conditions, make us lie down in His
presence and then commanding us to “be still.”
Psalm 46:10
Psalm 37:7
Matthew 11:28
B. WISDOM PRESCRIBES IT.
--If you want to grow in the wisdom of the Lord,
prepare to wait on Him because wisdom will not be rushed.
--Information can be learned quickly, facts can be
discovered on the run, but wisdom grows slowly in your innermost being as truth
bears fruit in the hidden recesses of your heart and mind.
Psalm 51:6
--Since wisdom is the application of knowledge in
the most noble and laudable way, we would do well to devote more time to being
still and allowing what we know to take root and develop into wisdom.
--Wisdom prescribes waiting, resting, being still,
meditating, pondering, reflecting, applying truth...all as necessary for the
believer to find the fullness of peace with God and enjoy the freshness of
walking with God.
C. SURVIVAL DEPENDS UPON IT.
--Our physical survival depends upon the times we set aside to rest and so it is also with our spiritual survival.
1. Trees Planted by not Passing by Streams of
Water
Psalm 1:3
--Suppose you were to place a tree in a large
container on the back of a truck and drive the entire length of a river; it
would not survive unless it were planted by that water long enough to allow its
roots to drink in some life-sustaining moisture.
2. Guests Feasting not Fasting by Tables of
Plenty
--How sad we would be if we were starving and were
led by tables filled with food and not allowed to stop and eat!
--An abundance of food means little to the hungry
person who cannot be still long enough to take nourishment from all that is
there!
--In order to survive, we not only have to see the
food and know that it is there, but we need to come to the table and rest long
enough to eat and take in the nourishment.
--In order to survive spiritually, we need
occasionally to be still so that the Lord can nourish our thirsty, hungry and
exhausted souls!
D. SUCCESS REQUIRES IT.
--Before you boast of your success in life, consider
what God considers “boast-worthy.”
Jeremiah 9:23-24
1. Be Still and Learn of Me
Matthew 11:28-29
2. Be Still and Know
Psalm 46:10
3. Be Still and Meditate
Joshua 1:8
--In order to enjoy success in the life of the
Spirit, there is no substitute for taking time to be quiet and still in the
presence of the Lord.
--Otherwise, all your striving will prove to be
fruitless because it has not been nourished by the nurture of the Lord.
--There may be some who would argue against
stillness as a waste of time, but anything that we do apart from Christ amounts
to absolutely nothing.--Therefore, the biblical rationale for the Lord making
me lie down makes sense and is surely supported by God’s Word.
III. ROOM FOR A TIME OF NURTURING STILLNESS
--What then are we to make of this emphasis on
stillness in the midst of our own hectic, frantic lives?--Can I actually
experience what the Shepherd has prepared for His sheep knowing how my life
looks?
A. SIGNIFICANT TIME: RECOGNIZE THE VALUE
--Let’s face facts:
we make time for the things we value the most, even if it means
sacrificing something else.
--Therefore, we have to admit that if we do not
recognize stillness as valuable to our lives, we will not see it as significant
enough pursue with either diligence or consistency.
1. Valued for the Necessity of It
--If you have come to the conclusion, at least in
practical terms, that you can live without times of stillness in the quiet
presence of the Lord, you will never be inclined to see stillness as something
that has significance to you.
--But if we see it as more important than physical
food when we are hungry, more essential than sleep when we are weary, nore
essential than water when we are thirsty, we will value the necessity enough to
make stillness as much a priority as we do the most important concerns of our
lives.
Job 23:12
2. Valued for the Delight in It
Psalm 37:4
--If there is genuine delight in spending time in
stillness before the Lord, I will obviously be more intent about making that
time a priority.
--To delight myself in the Lord, like any other
delight in my life, I must devote the time and energy necessary to the
enjoyment of that delight.
--We must learn to savor our taste for the quiet
place and the still times looking forward to them with great delight for we
know that He will meet us there and as our Shepherd do us much good!
B. SCHEDULED TIME: RESERVE THE OPPORTUNITY
--Do you have time to rest in stillness in the
presence of the Lord? Of course you do!
--God would not have short-changed you in the amount
of time you have but amply supplies all you need to do all that He asks.
--Therefore, if you have no time left for being
alone and quietly still in His presence, you are obviously misusing some of the
time He apportioned to you for Him on something else.
C. SURRENDERED TIME: RELY ON HIS LEADING
--When you finally lie down in stillness in His
presence, submit your agenda to His and let Him lead you where He wants to take
you.
--That does not mean that you make no plans; you
need to be working your way through His Word and organizing your thoughts so
that when you pray you can stay focused.
--But do not be a slave to your plan...allow Him to
take you where you need to go, not just where you think you want to go.
--Time that is surrendered to Him leads to some wonderful surprises as He shows us new places to drink and feed, new ways to delight and give thanks, new reasons to trust and rest in Him.
August 22, 1999
Providence
Baptist Church
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