HE RESTORES MY SOUL
PSALM 23:3
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR
1. A priest had been to the church bazaar where there had been wine and he had a couple of bottles in the back seat of his car. A cop pulled him over for swerving a little and saw the jugs in the back seat.
2. “Father, have you been drinking?” “Just water.” “What’s in these bottles?” “Water.” The cop opened one, smelled it, and said, “This is wine!” The priest exclaimed with amazement, “He’s done it again!”
B. TEXT
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. 3 He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. 4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over. 6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Ps. 23:1-6
C. THESIS & TITLE
1. Verse 3 says that God “restores” our soul. This word means that He brings us back to a state of new strength, vigor and eternal perspective; He rebuilds and repairs our frayed nerves, worried mind, and worn-out bodies.
2. Without God’s restoration we’d quickly give in to discouragement, destructive attitudes, and temptations. We need to allow the Lord to restore us emotionally, mentally and spiritually. So tonight, we’re looking at how God “restores our souls.”
I. RESTORATION: GOD’S GIFT TO MANY ANIMALS
A. EXAMPLES OF AMAZING REGROWTH
Wouldn’t it be amazing to be able to regenerate a new limb or damaged organ after an injury? Imagine never having to get dentures because you could grow new teeth! Here’s a few examples of animals who can do just that.
1. The SALAMANDER is an amphibian with a tail and short legs. It’s cousin, the Axolotl, can regenerate organs, skin, limbs, or practically any body part.
2. SHARKS can regrow teeth throughout their lifetimes. The length of time it takes for a shark to regrow a tooth varies from a few days to a few months. If scientific researchers can determine how this process works, it could revolutionize dentistry.
3. STARFISH can not only grow a new limb, but these creatures can also grow a whole new body from the lost limb. Several new starfish can grow from pieces of the original one. Now, that’s amazing!
4. MEXICAN TETRA FISH The river-dwelling Mexican tetra is a fish that can regenerate heart tissue. Research shows that this fish can generate tissue with no scarring. Scientists hope that studying the Mexican tetra could lead to breakthroughs in the field of cardiovascular disease.
5. CHAMELEONS Although chameleons are best known for their color-changing ability, they are also able to regenerate. Chameleons can regrow their tails and limbs. They can also heal damaged nerves and skin during the regenerative process. https://scitechdaily.com/6-animals-that-can-regenerate-body-parts/
B. HUMAN REGROWTH IS POSSIBLE ALSO
1. In 1974, Cynthia Illingworth, an English physician specializing in emergency medicine, discovered that when children accidentally sever the finger-tip (down to the first joint), the best treatment is no treatment. Cleaned and covered with a bandage, the finger tip, including the nail, grows back. In 11 or 12 weeks the new finger tip usually looks as if nothing had happened to it.
2. There seem to be three requirements for regrowth: the patient must be under 12 years old, the cut must be above the crease of the first joint, and surgeons must keep hands off the injury. Any operation performed on the finger destroys its ability to grow back. The last condition is the hardest to accept, admits Dr. Michael Bleicher, a pediatric surgeon at Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York City. [Reader’s Digest, March, 1980]
3. I have heard numerous times of adults who had blockage in arteries and their body grew a new artery around the blockage. This has been confirmed by a Yale Study. https://news.yale.edu/2013/04/29/growing-new-arteries-bypassing-blocked-ones
II. THE PROBLEM OF SOUL-DEGENERATION
A. WAYS THE SOUL CAN BE AFFECTED
1. The same thing that can happen in the physical can also happen in the spiritual realm. When God says He’s willing to “restore our souls,” He’s tells us that ‘soul degeneration’ is a big problem, in fact, it’s a universal problem.
2. All humans were separated from communion with God because of the Fall; we all need to be restored to fellowship with Him. That’s why Jesus died – to reconnect us to the life of God that flows through Him.
3. But even after salvation, we can still be deprived of this healing fellowship by sin, trying circumstances, time pressures, emotional rollercoasters, or lack of access to the sources of spiritual nourishment.
4. David experienced this when he fell into sin. He ended up praying, “Restore to me the joy of my salvation!” Ps. 51:12. David wanted his relationship with God restored – a re-connecting of God’s Spirit to his soul, which he forfeited by sin. When that relationship is restored, his joy would be restored – He’d be in favor with God and in union with God’s Spirit again.
B. GOD IS HAPPY TO RESTORE US
1. Our God is the God who restores limbs and renews organs and arteries. Why should we think it strange that God would “restore our souls?” In Ps. 23:3, the Hebrew word for ‘restore’ is “shoob” (Strong’s 7725); it means “to turn back,” “to return” to the starting point; to “recover, refresh, relieve, restore, reverse, and return.”
2. David knew that God would restore his soul, so he repented of sin and sought the face of God until mercy and grace came, and David was restored to fellowship and acceptance with God. This is available through Jesus Christ. God wants to take you back to your starting point in Christ!
3. ILLUS.: LOST IDENTITY
a. Have you ever lost your driver’s license? It can be a traumatic event! I lost my driver’s license several years ago. For all practical purposes I lost my identity.
b. You can’t write a check – stores won’t take a check without proper identification. It’s chancy using a credit card; a good clerk will ask for identification. And if you have to catch an airplane flight….forget about it!
c. Medicines on the watch list can’t be picked up and you can’t go through a bank drive-through to get cash.
d. WHAT A BLESSING TO HAVE YOUR IDENTITY BACK! What a blessing to have your IDENTITY WITH GOD RESTORED!
III. SIX WAYS GOD RESTORES OUR SOULS
A. HE RESTORES US THROUGH REMINDERS
1. The Psalmist said, “Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits” Ps. 103:1-2.
2. Paul reminded the Ephesians, "God...has blessed [you] with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ," Eph. 1:3. Paul told Timothy, "Remember Jesus Christ."
3. Often people burn out or grow weary because they’ve forgotten that Jesus loved them enough to die for them. He endured all that for us; we must endure for Him.
B. HE RESTORES US THROUGH REPLENISHING
1. The Lord refuels us with new strength, energy and vitality every moment of the day. "They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, they will run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint," Isa 40:31.
2. We must take time to replenish our minds and hearts by the Word, prayer, worship, and fellowshipping with God’s people. These are the means of grace God has given us to be nourished by.
3. Many people allow their spiritual batteries to run low because they haven’t taken time or effort to discipline themselves to personal devotions every morning and evening. Even Jesus needed spiritual replenishing every morning. Mark 1:35 says, "While it was still dark, Jesus got up and went out to a lonely place and there He prayed."
C. GOD RESTORES US BY GIVING US RELIEF
1. God is Jehovah-Jireh, our Provider, who relieves our financial problems, and meets every social and spiritual burden of our life. When we have stress, He gives us the perfect peace that passes all understanding, Phil. 4:6-7.
2. Illustration: A relief pitcher is called in when the starter loses the zip in his fast ball or the bend in his curveball. God relieves us exactly when we need to be at our best and always gives us victory over the world, the flesh and the devil.
D. HE RESTORES US THROUGH REMEDIES
1. Only the Lord knows the exact remedies that we need to solve our particular problem. He has solutions for every need if we’ll only take time to listen to Him.
2. He has a way of turning every negative situation into an opportunity to work all things together for good. He restores us so we can serve Him better, become more like the Master and turn away from any bitterness that limits our relationships.
E. HE RESTORES US THROUGH ‘RELEASE’
1. The Lord knows how to break the chains that bind us with fear, anger, & trouble. Too many people are in bondage to their addictions because they haven’t sought the Lord to deliver them from their fears & problems, Ps. 34:1-4. David sought the Lord and was delivered from his fears, worries, and his adversaries.
2. Allow the Lord to release you from whatever is hindering you from full-growth into Christ. Stunted-growth will limit you from being and doing all of God wants you to.
F. HE RESTORES US THROUGH REFOCUSING
1. We can reinvigorate our mind, emotions and spirit when we get a new vision of God’s love and faithfulness. Proverbs 29:18 says, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.”
2. Vision sees the good things that are coming; vision helps us to see God has a purpose for us even when our world seems upside down. Just focusing on the here and now may lock us into discouragement. But knowing that “the best is yet to come” helps us focus on the “joy set before us” instead of the negatives currently around us.
3. Refocusing to the voice of God is a prescription to victory. He can see into the future; all we see is the present. Let Him restore your soul by refocusing!
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION: ONLY THE ORIGINAL BUILDER CAN RESTORE IT
1. In a remote Swiss village stands a beautiful church – Mountain Valley Cathedral. It has high pillars and magnificent stained glass windows, but what makes it special is its beautiful pipe organ. People came from across the world to hear its majestic music.
2. One day something went wrong with the pipe organ; it only released the wrong tones, and sounds of disharmony. Musicians and experts from around the world tried to repair it but no one could find the problem. Finally they gave up.
3. Some time later an old man came. "Why isn’t the pipe organ used?" he asked. "It’s not playing right," the church staff said. "Let me try." The staff reluctantly agreed.
4. For two days the old man worked in almost total silence. The church worker responsible was getting a bit nervous. Then on the third day - at noon – suddenly the music came. The pipe organ gave off perfect music after so many years. The people in the village heard and came to the church to hear it.
5. When the old man finished playing at the organ they asked, "How did you fix it? How could YOU restore this magnificent instrument, when even the world’s best experts could not?"
6. The old man said, "It was I who built this organ fifty years ago. I created it, and now I have restored it."
[James S. Hewett, Illustrations Unlimited (Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc, 1988) pp. 244-245.]
B. THE CALL
1. Have you been deprived of fellowship with God by sin, difficult circumstances, pressures, emotional rollercoasters, or lack of access to the sources of spiritual nourishment?
2. Do you need God to “restore your soul?” We’re going to pray for God to renew you, relieve you, release you & help you get a new vision. PRAYER.
[This message a rewrite of Paul Fritz’s message of the same title.]
