What the Lord is to Me
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2 Surely God is my salvation;
I will trust, and will not be afraid,
for the Lord God is my strength and my might;
he has become my salvation.
3 With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation. 4 And you will say in that day:
Give thanks to the Lord,
call on his name;
make known his deeds among the nations;
proclaim that his name is exalted.
5 Sing praises to the Lord, for he has done gloriously;
let this be known in all the earth.
6 Shout aloud and sing for joy, O royal Zion,
for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.
AS WE COME UPON CHRISTMAS DAY….WHICH IS ONLY 14 DAYS AWAY, MANY ARE PREPARING OUR SHOPPING LIST…..TO BUY CHRISTMAS GIFTS FOR OUR LOVED ONES……MANY ARE PREPARING OUR GROCERY LIST AND PLANNING THE MENU FOR THE GREAT FEAST WE WILL HAVE ON CHRISTMAS DAY. MANY ARE DECORATING THEIR HOMES WITH FESTIVE CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS…..PUTTING LIGHTS UP OUTSIDE THEIR HOMES…..DRAPPING THE FIREPLACE WITH GARLAND…PUTTING UP THE STOCKINGS…..SETTING UP THE NATIVITY…WITH LITTLE BABY JESUS IN THE MANAGER. PUTTING UP CHRISTMAS TREES…..AND TRIMMING THEM WITH ORNAMENTS….. YES THESE ARE THE THINGS THAT WE DO IN THE CHRISTMAS SEASON……. ALL OF THESE ARE WONDERFUL TRADITIONS THAT WE HAVE IN THIS SEASON…… THAT WE CELEBRATE THE BIRTH OF OUR LORD AND SAVIOR JESUS THE CHRIST. LET ME REMIND YOU THAT THIS IS ALSO A TIME OF THE YEAR THAT WE SHOULD REFLECT ON THE GOODNESS OF GOD AND HOW HE HAS BLESSED US AND COVERED US THROUGHOUT THE YEAR.
YES MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS ….GOD HAS BEEN GOOD TO US…GOD HAD BLESSED US…..…HIS MERCY AND GRACE HAS CARRIED US THROUGH THIS YEAR………AND WE SHOULD NOT FORGET IT…….YES MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS…..I PRAISE THE LORD TODAY AND EVERY DAY! I PRAISE GOD BECAUSE HE IS MY ALL AND ALL. I GIVE GLORY TO GOD BECAUSE HE IS WORTHY OF ALL GLORY……. OUR SCRIPTURE FOR THE SERMON IS A SONG OF PRAISE….PRAISING THE LORD FOR WHO HE IS.
SOME OF YOU MAY BE THINKING …..PASTOR….I DIDN’T HEAR YOU SAY THE SUBJECT OR TOPIC OF YOUR SERMON….. WELL I’M GLAD YOU WERE PAYING ATTENTION AND LISTENING……
FROM OUR TEXT THIS MORNING I’D LIKE TO USE THE TOPIC ……”WHAT THE LORD IS TO ME”….
YES I BELIEVE THIS SONG OF PRAISE THAT THE PROPHET ISAIAH GIVES US ….CAN BE A PERSONAL TESTIMONY FOR ALL OF THOSE WHO BELIEVE IN THE LORD THIS MORNING…
IN THIS HYMN OF PRAISE MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS…..ISAIAH GIVES A PROPHECY OF THE PEOPLE’S JOY WHEN CHRIST COMES TO REIGN OVER THIS EARTH IN THE HIS KINGDOM, WHICH IS YET TO BE. BUT IT IS ALSO DESCRIPTIVE OF THE HERE AND NOW CONCERNING A CHILD OF GOD.
LOOK AT THE TEXT……IN VERST 2 THE A CLAUSE......IT SAYS…
Isaiah 12:2 (NRSV)
2 Surely God is my salvation;
I DON’T KNOW ABOUT YOU.....BUT I BELIVE THAT........
1. GOD IS MY SALVATION
THERE WAS A TIME IN MY LIFE.....WHEN I WAS STUCK IN SIN.....WHEN I WAS LOST AND TRYING TO LIVE LIFE MY WAY.
THERE WAS A TIME WHEN I WASN’T LIVING FOR THE LORD. I FELT EMPTY AND WAS TRYING TO FILL THE VOID IN MY LIFE.....ON MY OWN.
AND IF I CAN BE REAL WITH YOU THIS MORNING......I WAS CONDEMNED AND GOD WAS ANGRY WITH MY WICKED WAYS.
I WAS ON MY WAY TO ETERNAL CONDEMNATION.
11 God is a just judge,
And God is angry with the wicked every day.
BUT I WILL NEVER FORGET THE DAY IN THE FALL OF 1996 THAT I WAS AT SUNDAY SERVICE AT POPLAR GROVE BAPTIST CHURCH IN DARNESTOWN, MD WITH MY MOM.....AND THE LATE REVEREND JOSEPH AUSTIN (WHO WOULD LATER BECOME MY FRATERNITY BROTHER) ....PREACHED A SERMON THAT PRICKED MY HEART.....AND I REMEMBER I CRIED LIKE A BABY....I WAS CONVICTED OF MY SINS........ YES MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS.....SCRIPTURE TELLS US...
12 Indeed, the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
AND IT WAS AT THAT MOMENT.....I KNEW THAT I NEEDED JESUS....... IT WAS AT THAT MOMENT THAT I THE POWER OF GOD WAS UPON MY SPIRIT.....AND I KNEW I WANTED TO GIVE MY LIFE TO CHRIST.
YES I WENT FROM BEING CONDEMNED TO ETERNITY IN THE DEPTHS OF HELL....TO BEING SAVED..... GOD SAVED ME.
18 Those who believe in him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
B. YES GOD SAVED ME!
1 I waited patiently for the Lord;
he inclined to me and heard my cry.
2 He drew me up from the desolate pit,
out of the miry bog,
and set my feet upon a rock,
making my steps secure.
3 He put a new song in my mouth,
a song of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear,
and put their trust in the Lord.
I DON’T KNOW WHO NEEDS TO HEAR THIS....
BUT GOD IS MY SALVATION......AND HE IS YOUR SALVATION TOO!!!
AND FOR THOSE WHO ARE HERE OR WATCHING THIS MORNING.......IF YOU NEVER GAVE YOUR LIFE TO CHRIST......I’M HEAR TO TELL YOU THAT HE HAS HIS ARMS OPEN AND WAITING.....
HE WILL HEAR YOUR CRY......HE WILL DRAW YOU UP OUT OF YOUR PIT.......
WHAT THE LORD IS TO ME.....HE IS MY SALVATION......
ILLUSTRATION: ON OCTOBER 14, 1987, 18 MONTH OLD JESSICA MCCLURE FELL INTO AN ABANDONED MINE SHAFT IN HER AUNTS BACK YARD IN MIDLAND, TEXAS.
THE WORLD WATCHED THE 58 HR ORDEAL AS RESCUERS DRILLED INTO THE BEDROCK, AND WENT DOWN INTO THE HOLE TO GET HER.
THEY CUT THE PIPE BENEATH HER AND WERE ABLE TO GET HER FREE FROM THE 8” PIPE THAT HELD HER. THE PICTURE OF THE RESCUE WORKERS COMING UP FROM THAT HOLE AND HANDING THE LITTLE GIRL TO THOSE WAITING TO SAVE HER LIFE, WAS ONE OF THE MOST DRAMATIC MOMENTS ON TV.
HER RESCUE REMINDS ME OF HOW JESUS RESCUED MY SOUL.
HE DIDN’T JUST REACH DOWN TO WHERE I WAS. HE DID NOT LOWER SOME DIVINE ROPE TO PULL ME OUT OF MY PIT.
JESUS BROUGHT ME UP!
I BELIEVE THAT THE TEXT GIVE US ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF WHAT GOD IS TO ME........
LOOK AT THE B CLAUSE OF VERSE 2.......
2. GOD IS MY STRENGTH
Isaiah 12:2 (NRSV)
2 I will trust, and will not be afraid,
for the Lord God is my strength and my might;
YOU CAN GO A LONG WAY IN YOUR OWN STRENGTH. IT IS AMAZING WHAT A HUMAN CAN DO.
BUT, THERE WILL BE A TIME WHEN YOU FIND YOU NEED STRENGTH BEYOND YOURSELF.
IT MAY BE WHEN YOU LOSE YOUR JOB… OR HEALTH… OR STRUGGLE IN YOUR MARRIAGE OR WITH YOUR CHILDREN… THE DAY WILL COME WHEN YOU NEED GOD’S STRENGTH!
THEN YOU WILL FIND THAT LIFE IS SO MUCH BETTER WHEN YOU RELY ON HIS STRENGTH.
YES....YOU CAN BEAR A LOT ON YOUR OWN, BUT WHY WOULD YOU WANT TO?
(PSALMS 18:2 NLT) THE LORD IS MY ROCK, MY FORTRESS, AND MY SAVIOR; MY GOD IS MY ROCK, IN WHOM I FIND PROTECTION. HE IS MY SHIELD, THE STRENGTH OF MY SALVATION, AND MY STRONGHOLD.
(PSALMS 27:1 KJV) 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?
(PSALMS 46:1-3 NLT) GOD IS OUR REFUGE AND STRENGTH, ALWAYS READY TO HELP IN TIMES OF TROUBLE. 2 SO WE WILL NOT FEAR, EVEN IF EARTHQUAKES COME AND THE MOUNTAINS CRUMBLE INTO THE SEA. 3 LET THE OCEANS ROAR AND FOAM. LET THE MOUNTAINS TREMBLE AS THE WATERS SURGE! INTERLUDE
(1 CHRONICLES 16:11 NIV) LOOK TO THE LORD AND HIS STRENGTH; SEEK HIS FACE ALWAYS.
GRACE IS GOD PROVIDING, “ENABLING” GIVING US THE POWER WE NEED FOR LIFE…
FBC YOU DON’T HAVE TO DO IT ALONE.....FB LIVE WORSHIPPERS.....NO NEED TO TRY TO DO IT BY YOURSELVES..
LIFE CAN BE HARD.......LIFE CAN BE DIFFICULT AT TIMES.......
WE ALL FACE UPS AND DOWNS.......AND WHEN YOU’RE DOWN......WHEN YOU’RE FACING TROUBLE.........WHY TRY TO DO IT IN YOUR OWN STRENGTH?
I’M A LIVING TESTIMONY TO TELL YOU.....TRYING TO DO IT BY YOURSELF.....WILL ONLY LEAVE YOU DEFEATED.
9 but he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. 10 Therefore I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong.
GOD IS MY SALVATION.........GOD IS MY STRENGTH......AND WHEN YOU HAVE HIS SALVATION AND STRENGTH......
WHO CAN BE AGAINST YOU.....
GOD IS MY SALVATION......AND MY STRENGTH......
I BELIEVE THAT VERSE 3 TELLS US THAT GOD IS MY PROVIDER......
3 With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.
IN CHAPTER 8 ISAIAH HAD USED IMAGERY OF WATER TO SYMBOLIZE DIVINE SUPPLIES THAT ARE TOTALLY RELIABLE AND CAN BE TRUSTED......
HE SAYS......IS 8:6
6 Because this people has refused the waters of Shiloah that flow gently, and melt in fear before Rezin and the son of Remaliah;
THE WATERS OF SHILOAH FLOWING GENTLY AND CONSTANTLY.....INTO THE CITY ARE REPLACED BY WELLS OF SALVATION.
WHEN THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL WERE IN THE DESERT GOD PROVIDED THEM WITH WATER....
Exodus 15:25–27 (NRSV)
25 He cried out to the Lord; and the Lord showed him a piece of wood; he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet.
27 Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees; and they camped there by the water.
THE WATER IN THE WELL IS NEVER ENDING AND IS AN UNFAILING SOURCE.
AND MY BROTHERS AN SISTERS......GOD IS A NEVER ENDING SOURCE OF EVERYTHING WE WILL EVER NEED.
HE IS JEHOVAH JIREH.....THE ONE WHO PROVIDES.....OUR PROVISION......HE IS THE LIVING WATER......THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE.....
DAVID USES THE IMAGERY OF WATER IN PSALM 23:2
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures;
he leads me beside still waters;
GOD IS MY PROVIDER.........
BUT NOT ONLY IS GOD MY SALVATION.....MY STRENGTH......MY PROVIDER....HE IS ALSO MY SONG.....
YOU SEE HE WILL GIVE YOU A NEW SONG TO SING WHEN YOU HAVE HIM IN YOUR LIFE....
BUT NOT JUST ANY OL SONG....HE WON’T GIVE YOU A SINGLE.....HE WILL GIVE YOU MULTIPLE SONGS. YOU WILL HAVE WHAT THEY CALL IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY.....AN EP.....ALSO KNOWN AS AN EXTENDED PLAY.....SEVERAL SONGS YOU CAN SING....
3. HE IS MY SONG
THE NKJV OF ISAIAH 12 AND 2 READS LIKE THIS.....
2 Behold, God is my salvation,
I will trust and not be afraid;
‘For Yah, the Lord, is my strength and song;
He also has become my salvation.’ ”
YES HE IS OUR SALVATION.....OUR STRENGTH AND OUR SONG....
BUT WHAT IS THIS EXTENDED PLAY.....
LOOK AT IS 12:4
4 And you will say in that day:
Give thanks to the Lord,
call on his name;
make known his deeds among the nations;
proclaim that his name is exalted.
I BELIEVE THAT THIS TEXT TELLS US THAT WE WILL HAVE A SONG OF THANKS......
AND YOU WILL SAY IN THAT DAY......GIVE THANKS TO THE LORD.....
YES YOU WILL SING A SONG OF THANKS.....
BECAUSE YOU KNOW THAT IT WAS NOTHING BUT THE LORD.....
THAT BROUGHT YOU UP.....AND BROUGHT YOU OUT
GIVE THANKS TO THE LORD......
BUT YOU WILL ALSO HAVE THE SONG OF TESTIMONY......
Isaiah 12:4 (NRSV)
4 make known his deeds among the nations;
proclaim that his name is exalted.
Isaiah 12:4 (KJV 1900)
4 ,Declare his doings among the people,
Make mention that his name is exalted.
MAKE KNOWN HIS DEEDS AMONG THE NATION.....
YOU OUGHT TO BE TESTIFYING IN YOUR SONG......YOU HAVE A SONG OF TESTIMONY....TO TELL EVERYONE …HOW THE LORD DELIVERED YOU.....TO TELL EVERYONE …WHAT HE HAS DONE.....
LISTEN......IT’S GOOD TO TELL OTHERS WHAT THE LORD HAS DONE......NOT ONLY WILL IT BE A REMINDER FOR YOU....IT WILL ENCOURAGE SOMEONE WHO IS GOING THROUGH WHAT YOU WENT THROUGH.....
A SONG OF THANKSGIVING.....A SONG OF TESTIMONY....AND
YOU WILL ALSO HAVE A SONG OF PRAISE....
LOOK AT VERSE 5
5 Sing praises to the Lord, for he has done gloriously;
let this be known in all the earth.
YES YOU HAVE A SONG OF THANKS....A SONG OF TESTIMONY....A SONG OF PRAISE.....
BUT THERE IS ANOTHER SONG YOU WILL SING......
A SONG OF JOY
6 Shout aloud and sing for joy, O royal Zion,
for great in your midst is the Holy One of Israel.
CONCLUSION: LET’S THANK GOD FOR ALL HE IS TO US!
HE IS MY SALVATION - CAN YOU SAY HE IS YOUR SALVATION?
HE IS MY STRENGTH - ARE YOU DRAWING ON HIS STRENGTH?
HE IS MY PROVIDER - HE WILL SUPPLY YOUR NEEDS.
HE IS MY SONG – IF GOD IS YOUR SALVATION AND STRENGTH, HE WILL GIVE YOU A SONG TO SING!