CHAMPIONING STABILITY—Psalm 119:165
Attention:
Tactful Lieutenant:
A certain lieutenant was brilliant in military matters, but lacked a few social graces.
One day he called a soldier in to the office & said "Kramer, your grandmother died."
Understandably, the soldier’s spirit was completely destroyed.
The colonel pulls the lieutenant aside & says, "You have got to be a little more tactful. I have some books at home that can help you."
The lieutenant read the half-dozen books lent to him by the colonel & before long he was ready for the next crisis.
Private Taylor's grandfather had passed away.
So the next morning, at reveille, the lieutenant said, "Men, take one step forward if you have a grandfather still living? Most of them step forward as instructed. The lieutenant quickly says, “Not so fast, Private Taylor!”
The lieutenant was not very good at Championing Stability as he should have been.
God’s people are also to be Champions(protectors/fighters for) of Stability!
Veteran’s Day has everything to do with maintaining peace & security in our homeland.
Maintaining peace & security has multiple fronts upon which it is sought & fought. We commend you for your service to these United States!
We should be those who Champion Godly Stability, individually & corporately—as a church & as nation.
The Psalmist Championed the stability & security of God’s people.
The Holy Spirit champions the stability of God’s people.
When or Where is the stability of God’s people championed?
3 measures/gauges of the stability of God’s people.
1—The stability of God’s people is championed within...
Your/Their PEACE(:165a)
Explanation:(:165a)
:165a—“Great peace have those who love Your law, And nothing causes them to stumble.”
Veteran’s Day—These give & gave of themselves for the sake of peace. That peace being limited to the absence of war, or martial occupation. That absence of martial conflict is sought so that God’s “great peace” can be a upon those within our country.
“Great peace” can be your possession! It can be had by anyone!
No matter your station in life(cf.-point #3), you can have “great peace”!
So, If you are looking for “peace”, then know that you ‘can’ have it!...
...If you are looking for “peace”, then know that you ‘can’ not only have “peace” but “great” “peace”!
There are at least 3 dimensions(‘withs’) to God’s peace:
(from Ken Sande’s book, ‘The Peacemaker’)
i. Peace with God
•Jesus made it possible for us to have peace with God.
Col. 1:19-20—“For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, & by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.”
Rom. 5:1-2—“Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, & rejoice in hope of the glory of God.”
Col. 3:15(cf.-iii.-‘Peace with Ourselves’)—“And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; & be thankful.”
ii. Peace with(in) Ourselves
•Internal peace yields—wholeness, contentment, tranquility, order, rest, & security.
Isa. 26:3-4—“You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You. Trust in the LORD forever, For in YAH, the LORD, is everlasting strength.”
Isa. 48:18—“Oh, that you had heeded My commandments! Then your peace would have been like a river, And your righteousness like the waves of the sea.”
Jn. 16:33—“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
Col. 3:15(cf.-i.-‘Peace with God’)—“And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; & be thankful.”
iii. Peace with Others
•The presence of genuine harmony, understanding & goodwill among people, particularly among God’s people!
Rom. 12:9-21—“Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer; distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless & do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice, & weep with those who weep. Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion. Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. Therefore “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; If he is thirsty, give him a drink; For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
*Mat. 5:9—“Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God.”
2Cor. 13:11—“Finally, brethren, farewell. Become complete. Be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; & the God of love & peace will be with you.”
*Eph. 4:1-3—“I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness & gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”
*Heb. 12:14, 15—“Pursue peace with all people, & holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, & by this many become defiled;”
BUT...there is a requirement to “having” or experiencing this “peace” of which the Bible refers—‘Your LOVE’(See point #2)
“Great”—br rab—Adj.—1) Much, many, great—1a) Much, 1b) Many, 1c) Abounding in, 1d) More numerous than, 1e) Abundant, enough, 1f) Great, 1g) Strong, 1h) Greater than. Adverb—1i) Much, exceedingly. Noun Masc.—2) Captain, chief. Strong—Abundant(in quantity, size, age, number, rank, quality).?Contracted from—bbr raw-bab'—a primitive root; properly--To cast together, i.e. Increase, especially in number; also(as denominative from hbbr[abundance/a myriad])--To multiply by the myriad.
“Peace”—Mwlv shaw-lowm' OR Mlv shaw-lowm’—Noun Masc.—1) Completeness, soundness, welfare, peace—1a) Completeness(in number), 1b) Safety, soundness(in body), 1c) Welfare, health, prosperity, 1d) Peace, quiet, tranquility, contentment, 1e) Peace, friendship—1e1) Of human relationships, 1e2) With God especially in covenant relationship, 1f) Peace(from war), 1g) Peace(as adjective). Strong—Safe, i.e. figuratively--Well, happy, friendly; also (abstractly)--Welfare, i.e. Health, prosperity, peace.
From—Mlv shaw-lam'—a primitive root; To be safe(in mind, body or estate); To be(causatively, make) completed; To be friendly; To reciprocate(in various applications).
Argumentation:
Ps. 34:14-15—“Depart from evil & do good; Seek peace & pursue it. The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, And His ears are open to their cry.”
Isa. 57:15-21—“For thus says the High & Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high & holy place, With him who has a contrite & humble spirit, To revive the spirit of the humble, And to revive the heart of the contrite ones. For I will not contend forever, Nor will I always be angry; For the spirit would fail before Me, And the souls which I have made. For the iniquity of his covetousness I was angry & struck him; I hid & was angry, And he went on backsliding in the way of his heart. I have seen his ways, & will heal him; I will also lead him, And restore comforts to him And to his mourners. I create the fruit of the lips: Peace, peace to him who is far off & to him who is near,” Says the LORD, “And I will heal him.” But the wicked are like the troubled sea, When it cannot rest, Whose waters cast up mire & dirt. There is no peace,” Says my God, “for the wicked.”
Eph. 2:13-18—“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, & has broken down the middle wall of separation, having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, & that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. And He came & preached peace to you who were afar off & to those who were near. For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.”
*Php. 4:6-7—“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer & supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; & the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts & minds through Christ Jesus.”
Lk. 1:76-79—““And you, child[John], will be called the prophet of the Highest; For you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways, To give knowledge of salvation to His people By the remission of their sins, Through the tender mercy of our God, With which the Dayspring[Jesus] from on high has visited us; To give light to those who sit in darkness & the shadow of death, To guide our feet into the way of peace.””
*Isa. 9:6—“For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
*Jn. 14:27—“Peace I[Jesus] leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”
Gal. 6:14-16—“But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, & I to the world. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but a new creation. And as many as walk according to this rule, peace & mercy be upon them, & upon the Israel of God.”
Mat. 13:20-21—[parable of the sower]“But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word & immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.”
There is no settled peace for such a person, regarding their relationship to Christ Jesus, & therefore they fall away from Him.
*Js. 3:17-18—“But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy & good fruits, without partiality & without hypocrisy. Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”
2Thes. 3:16—“Now may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace always in every way. The Lord be with you all.”
2Tim. 3:16-17—“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
Peace comes thru trust in God’s word.
Illustration:
Shutting your mouth when you had a right to open it.
Our Chocolate Lab mix named ‘Hershey’—The other day he got into the garbage in the house—He was after chicken bones, etc./We promptly removed the entire ‘tall trash bag’ to the dumpster outside/Now there is PEACE within him as well as in the house!
Box Turtles/Upon approaching them they may retreat completely into their shells even ‘closing the door’ as it were!/If you sit there long enough, & do not threaten them in any way(sudden moves or noises) you will be rewarded by their coming out of their shell & going about their business/The turtle accepts the stability of the situation & will then do what it originally intended—Looking for food, rest, a mate, etc./PEACE
Does your PEACE champion stability?
God is the ultimate Champion of peace!
Application:
?Is God-ordained Stability Championed within Your PEACE?
?Are you a Champion of Stability?
CONCLUSION:
Visualization:
The Un-Tactful Lieutenant—needed to Champion Stability!
Action:
The stability of God’s people is championed within...
1. Their/Your PEACE(:165a)
Pt. 1 only! presented 11/12/2017am to:
FBC Cbelle
206 Storrs Ave. SE(SE Ave. A)
Carrabelle, FL 32322
