SF548 - GOD_S CURE FOR BACKSLIDERS (Psalm 23 3)
SF548
GOD’S CURE FOR BACKSLIDERS
Psalm 23:3
INTRODUCTION
What do the following men have in common? ‑‑
Jacob, David, Samson, Simon Peter, John Mark, and Tim McGhee
They're all men of God who love God, who have gotten out of fellowship with God Who've been brought back into fellowship with God.
It is the nature of a sheep to wander and to stray.
But it is the nature of the shepherd to restore his sheep.
I want to talk to you today about how to get right with God and how to stay right with God.
Many of us become what the Bible calls backsliders.
A backslider is not lost. A backslider is a saved person who is out of fellowship with God.
Three truths that will help you to get right and stay right...
The Ministry of the Shepherd
The Mastery of the Shepherd
The Majesty of the Shepherd
1A. THE MINISTRY OF RESTORATION (3a)
David thought of himself as a sheep and he thought of the Lord as his good shepherd. You know, Jesus is the Good Shepherd.
Three kinds of sheep that need to be restored.
1B. The Stubborn Sheep who are Restored by the Rod
Protection
The shepherd would go out and he would find a little sapling, and he would dig that sapling up by the root. And the shepherd would cut away the roots leaving a knob a little larger than his fist. Finally, he would work it until it was smooth and just right. He would smooth that staff down, and then he would take that knob on the end and he would begin to drive nails in it, or bits of metal until it was heavy and weighted. And it became a very powerful club, a weapon in his hand. He would practice throwing that rod. He would throw it, and throw it. It became a deadly missile. And it was used to protect himself from the robbers. It was used to protect the sheep from predators.
Discipline
Very stubborn sheep, the shepherd would take that rod, and he would break one of the legs of that sheep. And after he had done that, he would immediately bind it, put it in a splint. he would carry the sheep often on his shoulders until the leg was mended. Finally, when that leg was healed again, he would restore the sheep to its feet. That sheep would stay very close to the shepherd. He would lead the other sheep.
(Hosea 6:1) "Come, let us return to the LORD. He has torn us to pieces but he will heal us; he has injured us but he will bind up our wounds.
Hebrew 12:5-11 Three things you can do...
1C. You can resent it (5)
Don’t resent it because...
It reveals your son ship (6)
It renews your worship (9)
God saved you to make you holy like him.
It restores our fellowship (11)
That sheep that had that broken leg never wanted to stray away form the shepherd again because he had broken but he had healed and he had wounded and torn, but he had bound up that wound.
2C. You can faint under it (5)
Have you ever seen people faint when chastisement comes? I have. They're stubborn and mulish. They get away from God. God brings chastisement and they just drop out. They just throw up their hands. They just quit. They become spiritual drop‑outs.
3C. You can be trained by it (11)
2B. The Straying Sheep who are Restored by the Staff
The shepherded staff
Now the shepherd would get another long sapling, he would soak it in water while it was green and pliable, till he could bend it into a crook. It was just big enough to go around the chest of a little lamb and just big enough to go around the neck of a sheep.
And with that staff, he would...
Rescue the sheep from danger
Retrieve the sheep from difficulty
Reunite the ewe and the lambs
3B. The Sick Sheep who are Restored with the Oil
The shepherd would daily inspect his sheep
He call them by name, but he would caress them. He would rub his fingers down into the wool, and he would be looking for a scar, a bruise, a scab, or a wounded place.
The shepherd would dutifully treat his sheep
He would pour on the healing oil. He would anoint the head of that sheep with oil. And that oil was there to soothe and to medicate and to heal and to lubricate, to give comfort to a suffering sheep. That oil would be mixed with sulfur and tar. And it was used to repel insects, insects. Sheep have a pest that bothers them called noseflies that get up into wounds and places in the nose and this oil would be smeared there on the sheep's nose to give comfort and protection from those pests.
2A. THE MASTERY OF THE SHEPHERD (3b)
1B. The Purpose of Restoration
God restores us to lead us in the paths of righteousness.
2B. The Problem of Restored
All we're interested in is getting restored. If you don't go from restoration to righteousness, you're gong to be right back in the same old problem.
3B. The Path of Righteousness
(John 10:27) My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.
In order to follow the shepherd, three things are necessary.
You must be obsessed with the shepherd. - Stay with him
You must observe the shepherd - Stay close to him
You must obey the shepherd - Listen carefully
You know what's wrong with so many of us? We're just always trying to get out of trouble rather than to get into righteousness.
Football recruiting story -
Find the guy who is knocking everybody down!
Wouldn’t you like to go on the offensive for a change?
3A. THE MAJESTY OF THE SHEPHERD - “For His name’s sake
1B. His Name Comforts Me
What is the name of the shepherd? Jehovah is my shepherd. Jehovah, or Yahweh, the most holy name for God in all of the Bible.
(Song of Songs 1:3) Pleasing is the fragrance of your perfumes; your name is like perfume poured out. ...
2B. His Name Challenges Me
God's name, God’s honor is at stake by the way you live and the way I live.
Jesus is our Jehovah
Jesus means Jehovah saves!
If I am his sheep and he is my shepherd, I don't want to disgrace that name.
APPLICATION
What keeps me straight?
The Lord restores me when I stray.
The Lord leads me day by day.
There is in my heart a burning desire to give glory to that name.
I know a soul that's steeped in sin,
that no man's art can cure.
But I know a name, a precious name;
That can make the soul all pure.
I know a life that's lost to God,
bound down by the things of earth,
but I know a name, a precious name,
that can bring that soul new birth.
Jesus, oh, how sweet the name.
(2 Timothy 2:19) ...: "The Lord knows those who are his," and, "Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness."