“The Lord is My Light”
Second Sunday of Lent: 2/28/10
Psalm 27:1-14
Introduction: Why is it that kids want to sleep with the light on? It is because they are afraid of the dark. And why are they afraid? Because their imaginations go wild when they think of what could be in their room. I remember that I was always afraid of what might be under my bed, or in my closet. It usually comes from stories we’ve heard, or movies we’ve watched. And once the light goes off, the imagination goes wild!
I know that my daughter is more afraid of what might happen at night, when it is dark, than in the day when it is light and we can see everything around us. There is the issue of security. This second week of Lent we turn our attention to how God is there for us in the fears of life; how God is our protector, our refuge, our salvation and our guide. So let’s look at Psalm 27, a psalm of David, someone who would have known about dangers in the dark having been a shepherd, seeking to protect his sheep.
I. The Lord is my Salvation- (Matthew 4:16; Jn. 1:3-9; Ps. 27:1, 7, 9, 13-14)
a. The light of salvation- Light is of great importance in our world.
Without light we would fail to thrive. Sunlight is what powers our world. It determines the length of each day. Plants must have sunlight to manufacture their food. Without the sunlight shining down, we would freeze. But it is also important for our mental well-being. It has been shown that people who live in climates with a great amount of darkness suffer a much higher level of depression.
Secondly, without light, we cannot see. Darkness is actually just the absence of light. We are designed so that our eyes need light to see. In fact, for some people, my cousin’s son being one of them, they have a condition that when it is dim lighting they can’t see at all; this is called night blindness. I have also learned about the importance of light as I have gotten older. For me to see well, I need for it to be well lighted. When it is dim, my eyes struggle to focus on the words on a page. The smaller the words, the more light that is needed.
This is true spiritually as well. We need light to see. And the light for us is Jesus Christ. Jesus Himself, speaking of His having come as the prophet foretold, said in Matthew 4:16- “The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light…a light has dawned.” In the gospel of John (1:3-9) we get an even great understanding of this, as John speaks about God coming in the flesh in the form of a human being, Jesus Christ: John says, “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4In him was life, and that life was the light of men. 5The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. 6There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. 7He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. 8He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. 9The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.”
The truth we need to understand, is that we were lost in the darkness of sin. Jesus came to help us see that through Him we could have salvation, and this salvation would be a light to us, helping us to see what is true; helping us to believe what is true. As Psalm 27:1 says, “The Lord is my light and my salvation…” Through Christ, we are not only saved, but we are able to see what is true. This then helps to take away our fear.
b. The stronghold of salvation- But the psalmist tells us that there is
more that we fear; we also fear our enemies. Throughout psalm 27 David tries to help us see how God is our stronghold, and in Him we have refuge, and security, and protection. EX. Sometimes at night the kids will have a bad dream. But it’s not bad enough for them to wake up. They might moan, or groan, or try and say something, but they don’t wake up. Yet, I know that whatever they are dreaming about is disturbing them. So I go into their room, and I lightly put my hand on their back. And I quietly say, “It’s okay, dad is here.” And with that, you can see their breathing changes, and their mind and body relaxes. THE FEAR SUBSIDES. Why? Because they trust that my presence helps to make things safe.
After telling us that the Lord is our light, and our salvation, David says: “The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” Then dropping down to verses 7 and 9: “Hear my voice when I call, O LORD; be merciful to me and answer me… Do not hide your face from me, do not turn your servant away in anger; you have been my helper. Do not reject me or forsake me, O God my Savior.” In these verses David is combining this idea of light (seeing) and stronghold (God being our place of security; a place to hide away from our enemies). David is calling out to God to not hide from him, but to let David see Him. David is asking God to not reject him; or in other words for God to make Himself visible to him. And he prays this with confidence, as God is His Savior.
There are many things that we can choose to be our stronghold; to help us feel safe in the midst of our enemies. For some it is found in relationships. For others it is found in money. Still for others it might be found in making themselves as healthy as they can be. And even more, some look to their possessions to be a stronghold. A stronghold is that place we turn to that makes us feel secure, safe, and at peace. But relationships can end; money is spent or can be lost; health will deteriorate; and possessions will fade away. But God is there forever. Unchanging. Undaunted. FOREVER.
II. The Lord is my Protector- (Psalm 27:2-3, 6, 11-12)
a. Confidence of the heart- David then turns his attention to the evil
doers who cause him to fear. You can hear the intensity of David’s fear, as he talks about the evildoers wanting to devour his flesh. We are not sure whom David is fearing, but they pose a great risk to his well-being. In this place, David was feeling weak and unable to protect himself. He was not confident in what he could do to save himself. But as we consistently see in the life of David, he is confident in God. He says in verses 2-3, “When evildoers assail me to devour my flesh—my adversaries and foes—they shall stumble and fall. Though an army encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war rise up against me, yet I will be confident.” Why will they stumble and fall? Because God is his protector.
Remember, David has had battles with lions, and bears, and with the giant Goliath. David has known fear, but he has also known confidence in the midst of fear. The fear comes from doubting himself. The confidence comes in knowing that he will be victorious with God’s help. David has seen victory after victory. And each time another enemy raises its head, David calls out to God, feels this confidence that comes from God, and then gives glory to God for the victory that is won. j
There are many who live their lives with confidence. For some, their confidence comes from their belief in themselves. For others, their confidence comes from the Lord. Is it wrong to be confident in yourself? Well, the answer to that is yes and no. No, in that God doesn’t want us to go around as fearful people, not wanting to step out for God, or not wanting to live our lives as He calls us to. This confidence needs to come from God, knowing that God will work out all things for the good to those who love Him.
But yes in that if we place our confidence solely in our own skills and endeavors, we will forsake God. Those who are confident in themselves, believe they don’t need God. In fact, the only time they might seek out God is when they can’t do something on their own. They become their own God!!
b. Lifting us up- David knows that as God protects him, and delivers
him from the hand of his enemies, he will be lifted up into that place where he feels all is well in life. Have you ever been in that place? It is a place where you feel at peace; you feel like nothing could go wrong. This is the place where David comes to, when his enemies are overcoming him. And in this place, David offers sacrifices of thanks to God, and shouts out with joy to God, and sings songs of gladness to the Lord.
This leads David to have the attitude of humility and understanding; an attitude we ourselves need to have. We read about it in verses 11-12: “Teach me your way, O Lord, and lead me on a level path because of my enemies. Do not give me up to the will of my adversaries…” At some point, we will not be able to do it on our own, and then we will need God. Let us put our confidence in God even before we need Him.
I want to read for you an excerpt of a journal that a friend of mine sent me via e-mail about his mission trip: “We started the day at the Butac Elementary School. We performed fluorid treatments on all of the students and teachers. Next, we loaded our belongings into a borrowed jeep and started up into the mountains. The jeep was a two wheel drive and was doing ok until we came to very wet, rocky, muddy climb. We accepted reality that we were not going to get there in our borrowed jeep, so we transferred to a four wheel drive jeep that Solomon had following us and left all of belongings except the important items like water and Bibles behind. With four wheel traction we made it to the top of the mountain and arrived at. Biwak Ilocos Sur. This is a town of about 30 families living under very primitive conditions. They are very self sufficient. We sang, worshiped the lord, then Pastor Scott gave a sermon about following Christ; we danced for the Lord and had a wonderful time of worship. We all shared what the Lord was doing in our lives. After service we were served a meal. On the way back to our two wheel jeep we all decided that we had truly had a mountain top experience. It is amazing how passionate these born again Christians are for the lord. The lord is definitely with us and is speaking through us.”/ How does this fit within the fear of our enemies? In this trip, there were several enemies: the road conditions getting to this place; the lack of sufficient supplies; the tiredness that comes from the travel; but the biggest enemy is Satan, trying to keep people from coming to the Lord and experiencing the power of the Lord. Because of this mission experience, my friend, having trusted in the protection and strength of the Lord, was lifted up by God!
In this time of Lent, we need these mountain top experiences to remind ourselves how we must fully commit ourselves to God, and put confidence in God alone!!
III. The Lord is my Refuge- (Psalm 27:4-5)
a. Behold God’s beauty- When God made this world, at each stage He
said “It is good.” God created this world to be good. God created this world to be beautiful. However, when sin came into the world, our goodness was affected, and in time has been corrupted. When God looks at His people, He cannot simply say, “It is good,” because there is much about us that is not good.
We can see beauty in many ways. The last two summers my family has traveled to Yosemite, and Sequoia, and the beauty that we saw in the rocks, and redwood trees, and streams, and varying colors of red, blue, green, and gray, were spectacular. As I mentioned in another sermon, we even saw a bear. But our world has made another kind of beauty important, and that is physical beauty. As we grow up in school, we deal with the challenge of being accepted, OR NOT, based on what we look like; our physical beauty. We hold up physical beauty as being of great importance, almost worshiping those in the public eye because of their beauty.
But when David says in Psalm 27:4, “…to behold the beauty of the Lord,” he is not talking about physical beauty. David is talking about the beauty of being in God’s presence. That is why he begins this verse by saying: “One thing I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after; to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life…” David puts the Lent season into perspective. We are called to seek after the Lord all the days of our lives. We are called to behold the beauty of God, and the beauty of relationships that come through the love of God.
I know for me, that when I am walking close to God, it is then that I can see the beauty that God puts in His people; the beauty that God places in this world. When I have been in deep worship with the Lord, I can feel that my life is beautiful.
b. Set me on a high rock- The place of greatest peace, is in the presence
of God. And this psalm reminds us that when we take shelter in the Lord, we are in a wonderful place of refuge. We are sheltered from our enemies, from our troubles in the cover of the tent of the Lord. In essence, the Lord takes us to a high place, far away from all concerns.
There is a wonderful book called Hinds Feet on High Places, by Hannah Hurnard. In this book she uses the verse from Habakkuk 3:19 (“The Lord God is my strength, and He will make my feet like hinds’ feet, and He will make me walk upon high places.”) to show how God can take us to higher places of love, joy, and victory. It is the story of the spiritual journey of Much-Afraid/ through the difficult places of her life. In this story Much-Afraid overcomes her tormenting fears as she passes through the many dangers of the valley, until she reaches the High Places. Let me read for you a small section of the book…..
“Up there on the mountaintop he was transfigured before her, and she knew him then to be what she had dimly sensed all along—the King of Love Himself, King of the whole Realm of Love. He was clothed in a white garment glistening in its purity, but over it he wore a robe of purples and blue and scarlet studded with gold and precious gems. On his head he wore the crown royal. But as Much-Afraid bowed herself and knelt at his feet to worship, the face that looked down upon her was that of the Shepherd whom she had loved and followed from the very low places up to the heights. His eyes were still full of gentleness and tenderness but also of strength and power and authority. Putting out his hand, without a word he lifted her up and led her to a place where on the upmost pinnacle of all they could look right out on the whole realm around them. Standing there beside him and so happy as to be scarcely conscious of herself at all…” (pages 190-191)
Conclusion: The Lord is our light. An important part of Lent is putting ourselves in a place where we let God be our light; where we are committed to God in a way that God can shine His light down the path we are to travel, and we let this light guide our way. It starts with the light of salvation, where we receive Christ as our Savior and Lord, and through this we can SEE the truth of God, as God shines His light into our hearts and minds. It continues as we let God be our protector and our place of refuge. So as you leave here today, I pray that you would echo the words of God with your mouth, upon your mind, and in your heart, the words from Psalm 27:4, “One thing I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after; to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord.” If you let the Lord be your light, then you will behold the beauty of God in your life even in the midst of your enemies and your struggles. Let us commit ourselves to this today. Amen.
Second Sunday of Lent: 2/28/10
Psalm 27:1-14
Introduction: Why is it that kids want to sleep with the light on? It is because they are afraid of the dark. And why are they afraid? Because their imaginations go wild when they think of what could be in their room. I remember that I was always afraid of what might be under my bed, or in my closet. It usually comes from stories we’ve heard, or movies we’ve watched. And once the light goes off, the imagination goes wild!
I know that my daughter is more afraid of what might happen at night, when it is dark, than in the day when it is light and we can see everything around us. There is the issue of security. This second week of Lent we turn our attention to how God is there for us in the fears of life; how God is our protector, our refuge, our salvation and our guide. So let’s look at Psalm 27, a psalm of David, someone who would have known about dangers in the dark having been a shepherd, seeking to protect his sheep.
I. The Lord is my Salvation- (Matthew 4:16; Jn. 1:3-9; Ps. 27:1, 7, 9, 13-14)
a. The light of salvation- Light is of great importance in our world.
Without light we would fail to thrive. Sunlight is what powers our world. It determines the length of each day. Plants must have sunlight to manufacture their food. Without the sunlight shining down, we would freeze. But it is also important for our mental well-being. It has been shown that people who live in climates with a great amount of darkness suffer a much higher level of depression.
Secondly, without light, we cannot see. Darkness is actually just the absence of light. We are designed so that our eyes need light to see. In fact, for some people, my cousin’s son being one of them, they have a condition that when it is dim lighting they can’t see at all; this is called night blindness. I have also learned about the importance of light as I have gotten older. For me to see well, I need for it to be well lighted. When it is dim, my eyes struggle to focus on the words on a page. The smaller the words, the more light that is needed.
This is true spiritually as well. We need light to see. And the light for us is Jesus Christ. Jesus Himself, speaking of His having come as the prophet foretold, said in Matthew 4:16- “The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light…a light has dawned.” In the gospel of John (1:3-9) we get an even great understanding of this, as John speaks about God coming in the flesh in the form of a human being, Jesus Christ: John says, “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4In him was life, and that life was the light of men. 5The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. 6There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. 7He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. 8He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. 9The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.”
The truth we need to understand, is that we were lost in the darkness of sin. Jesus came to help us see that through Him we could have salvation, and this salvation would be a light to us, helping us to see what is true; helping us to believe what is true. As Psalm 27:1 says, “The Lord is my light and my salvation…” Through Christ, we are not only saved, but we are able to see what is true. This then helps to take away our fear.
b. The stronghold of salvation- But the psalmist tells us that there is
more that we fear; we also fear our enemies. Throughout psalm 27 David tries to help us see how God is our stronghold, and in Him we have refuge, and security, and protection. EX. Sometimes at night the kids will have a bad dream. But it’s not bad enough for them to wake up. They might moan, or groan, or try and say something, but they don’t wake up. Yet, I know that whatever they are dreaming about is disturbing them. So I go into their room, and I lightly put my hand on their back. And I quietly say, “It’s okay, dad is here.” And with that, you can see their breathing changes, and their mind and body relaxes. THE FEAR SUBSIDES. Why? Because they trust that my presence helps to make things safe.
After telling us that the Lord is our light, and our salvation, David says: “The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” Then dropping down to verses 7 and 9: “Hear my voice when I call, O LORD; be merciful to me and answer me… Do not hide your face from me, do not turn your servant away in anger; you have been my helper. Do not reject me or forsake me, O God my Savior.” In these verses David is combining this idea of light (seeing) and stronghold (God being our place of security; a place to hide away from our enemies). David is calling out to God to not hide from him, but to let David see Him. David is asking God to not reject him; or in other words for God to make Himself visible to him. And he prays this with confidence, as God is His Savior.
There are many things that we can choose to be our stronghold; to help us feel safe in the midst of our enemies. For some it is found in relationships. For others it is found in money. Still for others it might be found in making themselves as healthy as they can be. And even more, some look to their possessions to be a stronghold. A stronghold is that place we turn to that makes us feel secure, safe, and at peace. But relationships can end; money is spent or can be lost; health will deteriorate; and possessions will fade away. But God is there forever. Unchanging. Undaunted. FOREVER.
II. The Lord is my Protector- (Psalm 27:2-3, 6, 11-12)
a. Confidence of the heart- David then turns his attention to the evil
doers who cause him to fear. You can hear the intensity of David’s fear, as he talks about the evildoers wanting to devour his flesh. We are not sure whom David is fearing, but they pose a great risk to his well-being. In this place, David was feeling weak and unable to protect himself. He was not confident in what he could do to save himself. But as we consistently see in the life of David, he is confident in God. He says in verses 2-3, “When evildoers assail me to devour my flesh—my adversaries and foes—they shall stumble and fall. Though an army encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war rise up against me, yet I will be confident.” Why will they stumble and fall? Because God is his protector.
Remember, David has had battles with lions, and bears, and with the giant Goliath. David has known fear, but he has also known confidence in the midst of fear. The fear comes from doubting himself. The confidence comes in knowing that he will be victorious with God’s help. David has seen victory after victory. And each time another enemy raises its head, David calls out to God, feels this confidence that comes from God, and then gives glory to God for the victory that is won. j
There are many who live their lives with confidence. For some, their confidence comes from their belief in themselves. For others, their confidence comes from the Lord. Is it wrong to be confident in yourself? Well, the answer to that is yes and no. No, in that God doesn’t want us to go around as fearful people, not wanting to step out for God, or not wanting to live our lives as He calls us to. This confidence needs to come from God, knowing that God will work out all things for the good to those who love Him.
But yes in that if we place our confidence solely in our own skills and endeavors, we will forsake God. Those who are confident in themselves, believe they don’t need God. In fact, the only time they might seek out God is when they can’t do something on their own. They become their own God!!
b. Lifting us up- David knows that as God protects him, and delivers
him from the hand of his enemies, he will be lifted up into that place where he feels all is well in life. Have you ever been in that place? It is a place where you feel at peace; you feel like nothing could go wrong. This is the place where David comes to, when his enemies are overcoming him. And in this place, David offers sacrifices of thanks to God, and shouts out with joy to God, and sings songs of gladness to the Lord.
This leads David to have the attitude of humility and understanding; an attitude we ourselves need to have. We read about it in verses 11-12: “Teach me your way, O Lord, and lead me on a level path because of my enemies. Do not give me up to the will of my adversaries…” At some point, we will not be able to do it on our own, and then we will need God. Let us put our confidence in God even before we need Him.
I want to read for you an excerpt of a journal that a friend of mine sent me via e-mail about his mission trip: “We started the day at the Butac Elementary School. We performed fluorid treatments on all of the students and teachers. Next, we loaded our belongings into a borrowed jeep and started up into the mountains. The jeep was a two wheel drive and was doing ok until we came to very wet, rocky, muddy climb. We accepted reality that we were not going to get there in our borrowed jeep, so we transferred to a four wheel drive jeep that Solomon had following us and left all of belongings except the important items like water and Bibles behind. With four wheel traction we made it to the top of the mountain and arrived at. Biwak Ilocos Sur. This is a town of about 30 families living under very primitive conditions. They are very self sufficient. We sang, worshiped the lord, then Pastor Scott gave a sermon about following Christ; we danced for the Lord and had a wonderful time of worship. We all shared what the Lord was doing in our lives. After service we were served a meal. On the way back to our two wheel jeep we all decided that we had truly had a mountain top experience. It is amazing how passionate these born again Christians are for the lord. The lord is definitely with us and is speaking through us.”/ How does this fit within the fear of our enemies? In this trip, there were several enemies: the road conditions getting to this place; the lack of sufficient supplies; the tiredness that comes from the travel; but the biggest enemy is Satan, trying to keep people from coming to the Lord and experiencing the power of the Lord. Because of this mission experience, my friend, having trusted in the protection and strength of the Lord, was lifted up by God!
In this time of Lent, we need these mountain top experiences to remind ourselves how we must fully commit ourselves to God, and put confidence in God alone!!
III. The Lord is my Refuge- (Psalm 27:4-5)
a. Behold God’s beauty- When God made this world, at each stage He
said “It is good.” God created this world to be good. God created this world to be beautiful. However, when sin came into the world, our goodness was affected, and in time has been corrupted. When God looks at His people, He cannot simply say, “It is good,” because there is much about us that is not good.
We can see beauty in many ways. The last two summers my family has traveled to Yosemite, and Sequoia, and the beauty that we saw in the rocks, and redwood trees, and streams, and varying colors of red, blue, green, and gray, were spectacular. As I mentioned in another sermon, we even saw a bear. But our world has made another kind of beauty important, and that is physical beauty. As we grow up in school, we deal with the challenge of being accepted, OR NOT, based on what we look like; our physical beauty. We hold up physical beauty as being of great importance, almost worshiping those in the public eye because of their beauty.
But when David says in Psalm 27:4, “…to behold the beauty of the Lord,” he is not talking about physical beauty. David is talking about the beauty of being in God’s presence. That is why he begins this verse by saying: “One thing I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after; to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life…” David puts the Lent season into perspective. We are called to seek after the Lord all the days of our lives. We are called to behold the beauty of God, and the beauty of relationships that come through the love of God.
I know for me, that when I am walking close to God, it is then that I can see the beauty that God puts in His people; the beauty that God places in this world. When I have been in deep worship with the Lord, I can feel that my life is beautiful.
b. Set me on a high rock- The place of greatest peace, is in the presence
of God. And this psalm reminds us that when we take shelter in the Lord, we are in a wonderful place of refuge. We are sheltered from our enemies, from our troubles in the cover of the tent of the Lord. In essence, the Lord takes us to a high place, far away from all concerns.
There is a wonderful book called Hinds Feet on High Places, by Hannah Hurnard. In this book she uses the verse from Habakkuk 3:19 (“The Lord God is my strength, and He will make my feet like hinds’ feet, and He will make me walk upon high places.”) to show how God can take us to higher places of love, joy, and victory. It is the story of the spiritual journey of Much-Afraid/ through the difficult places of her life. In this story Much-Afraid overcomes her tormenting fears as she passes through the many dangers of the valley, until she reaches the High Places. Let me read for you a small section of the book…..
“Up there on the mountaintop he was transfigured before her, and she knew him then to be what she had dimly sensed all along—the King of Love Himself, King of the whole Realm of Love. He was clothed in a white garment glistening in its purity, but over it he wore a robe of purples and blue and scarlet studded with gold and precious gems. On his head he wore the crown royal. But as Much-Afraid bowed herself and knelt at his feet to worship, the face that looked down upon her was that of the Shepherd whom she had loved and followed from the very low places up to the heights. His eyes were still full of gentleness and tenderness but also of strength and power and authority. Putting out his hand, without a word he lifted her up and led her to a place where on the upmost pinnacle of all they could look right out on the whole realm around them. Standing there beside him and so happy as to be scarcely conscious of herself at all…” (pages 190-191)
Conclusion: The Lord is our light. An important part of Lent is putting ourselves in a place where we let God be our light; where we are committed to God in a way that God can shine His light down the path we are to travel, and we let this light guide our way. It starts with the light of salvation, where we receive Christ as our Savior and Lord, and through this we can SEE the truth of God, as God shines His light into our hearts and minds. It continues as we let God be our protector and our place of refuge. So as you leave here today, I pray that you would echo the words of God with your mouth, upon your mind, and in your heart, the words from Psalm 27:4, “One thing I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after; to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord.” If you let the Lord be your light, then you will behold the beauty of God in your life even in the midst of your enemies and your struggles. Let us commit ourselves to this today. Amen.
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