We live in interesting times. I was thinking how strange things go, how I can remember it wasn't so long ago back when we still lived in the time of plenty before the great shortage came when we would Rejoicing in our abundance we would even festoon the cars trees and houses of our enemies With the precious toilet paper how we would at festive occasions and the imitation of snowmen wrap our youth In toilet paper the abundance we had then Compared to now. I of course I'm being facetious But it does give us a little glimpse of just the weird ways things happen in our world how things change in a moment I was saying to my family on Thursday evening I went to my work with the army and we walked in and at seven o'clock It was business as usual at nine o'clock I was told that my trip to Holland and May was cancelled as was all other international forces trips But everything else was business as usual by nine a.m. Friday morning I was told the entire reserves were shut down that none of us would report to anything that wherever we were we were to stay there and That it was advised that I stay home now my civilian job was not keen on that thought But it just the way things happen in our world and with this There is much that concerns but even greater Than the physical viruses is the growth of fear I had a co-worker come up to me Friday and say Stephen is this a picture of what it means when scripture says that men's hearts will fail them Out of fear Because there is much fear And it seems fitting at this time That we refocus ourselves so following the p-pattern of our elders and their announcement that came out earlier We're gonna look at three peas today.
We're gonna look at perspective. We're gonna look at provision We're gonna look at practice So if you're the kind of people who like having that all laid out there it is for the rest of you who don't care That's fine. We'll still focus on what's important if you'd open up in your Bibles Please do a familiar passage where we'll start this morning Psalm 121 Psalm 121 And as you find it, let's take a moment and let's go to the Lord our Lord and our God we come to you this morning Recognizing that you and you alone are the Lord That you are the creator and sustainer of all things and you hold all things together by the word of your power That only you know the end from the beginning The only you can say I make my plans and no one thwarts them Lord set our thoughts on you this morning Lord we praise you That you are Lord in the difficult moments just as you are Lord in the pleasant times Your sovereignty has not diminished Lord we praise you that you are the God of hope You are the God of peace you are the God of love mercy and compassion that you are the God of holiness and righteousness You are the God who says that you will not forsake your people that you will walk with us Lord this morning we praise you That we have hope Lord we pray that you would be with us as we look into your word that your spirit would remove distractions from us Calm our hearts focus our minds Lord we would desire that we would have eyes to see it ears to hear minds to understand and most of all hearts to be changed for your glory and yours alone Lord at this time we do pray for those Who are suffering the effects of this virus Lord we pray for those who are in quarantine those are in hospital Lord we lift them before you We pray for their healing and recovery Lord we pray for those our first responders our doctors our nurses our researchers those who walk day by day Ministering and caring for those who are sick Lord we pray protection on them strength for them Lord we pray for those in leadership over us that you will give them wisdom beyond themselves that they will seek you in Their decisions that their decisions would be motivated by nothing else but that for that which is best Lord we pray most of all that in the midst of this the people would turn to you That we would proclaim the gospel clearly in this season and people's hearts would be turned to you Lord use this for your glory in Jesus name amen So I'm 121 I lift my eyes to the hills where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord the maker of heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot slip He who watches over you will not slumber indeed He who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep the Lord watches over you the Lord is your shade at your right hand The Sun will not harm you by day nor the moon by night the Lord will keep you from all harm He will watch over your life the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forever more This Psalm is part of a collection of Psalms known as the Psalms of ascent those Psalms which were gathered together And used by the children of Israel as they would travel from wherever they lived in the land to Jerusalem For the great feasts and as they would walk along the road as families would join together as roads connected heading to Jerusalem They would sing these Psalms together from Psalm 120 through to Psalm 134 and the whole idea was to prepare their hearts and focus their attention as they were going to worship God at The temple in Jerusalem, but Psalm 121 hasn't added Significance because it was also referred to as the sojourner song that it would be the song that would be sung when people would head out on a journey particularly a journey of some distance a journey where there were fears along the way that They would sing this song as a means of encouragement and written in Hebrew It is a beautiful poem and there's very important word connections Which unfortunately is what happens when we translate something from one language to another we lose all that coolness But we're gonna draw some attention to it today. It begins by making a statement. I lift my eyes to the hills Where does my help come from? Which is a good question for us to start with this morning?
I look around me in this journey that I am on today Where does my help come from? Because right now people are searching for their help in all kinds of ways social media will give you every single possible answer you could want today I could bring up Facebook and I will find someone who will tell me that this particular Virus that is around is only going to affect a few old people and they'll probably get better and this is all just a way for You know the companies that sell disinfectants to make a money some money And then I will see the next post it will say this is the end of the world And then I'll see the next post that say this was started by some evil country and it's all you know a conspiracy And then the next post will say who in the world is using all the toilet paper and we'll go through these and people look at who might help Do I do I check the world health organization? I should check their post but wait a minute the federal government of Canada saying something different right now But I'm in Nova Scotia. What do the Nova Scotia saying?
Well, what does my natural path say? Well, what does this person say what does ant ethel say? And we look where does our help come from and for the Jews coming out as they would sing the song it asks a very important question of them Because you see when they look to the hills among their neighbors the Canaanites around about them the hills were the high places Where they would go to seek and worship the gods of the land roundabout? So in the high places around that's where the Canaanites would gather because that's where their gods they believed had strength So he begins by saying the Psalmist I look to the high places.
I look to the hills around Where does my help come from? Well, my neighbors Well, the Pete tribes around me while the other cultures are running up into the high places and times of distress or despair to cry out to their gods Where does my help come from? And then there's the beautiful response my help comes from the Lord the maker of heavens and earth They're looking to the high places hoping their God up on the high place has got power up there Well, my God made the high places and the low places and every place in between We could just meditate and praise the Lord on that this morning Because who understands what is happening right now from the smallest biological level to the greatest level happening the one who put it together The Lord knows what is happening my help comes from the Lord So there's the connection here goes Where does my help come from in Hebrew? You have the first language would actually be worded from where comes my help?
That's the question. What's the answer help comes from the Lord. I look to the hills the created things It ends with the one who created everything We need to set our perspective On the Lord He will not let your foot slip he who watches over you will not slumber indeed He watches over Israel when neither slumber nor sleep I love this little passage because I have a sort of personal relationship with this I have sleep apnea Which means that I fall asleep with great ease my daughter was commenting just this morning He said dead I hope you can stay awake while you're speaking and I said don't worry I do fine when I'm moving around she goes well I don't know just recently I think it was a day or so ago We were having a conversation in the middle of the afternoon and apparently I started to slip into unconscious Well, we were chatting which makes my conversation get really kind of funny as I'm slipping into sleep in the passage here It says God does not slumber which is the sense of one who drifts off for a moment in this world God has not missed a beat we hear in the news people saying well if this country had done this sooner This would not have happened they missed it the God of the universe is not distracted. He is not drifted off He is not missed a beat He is focused and then he says now he neither slumbers he not drifts off nor does he sleep with the ideas?
Okay, I need to take a break. I'm going to step away for a while. I'll get a good sleep But when I come back I hopefully things haven't fallen apart God doesn't do that God is attentive to his people he is ever present It's one of the qualities of the nature of God that he is ever present with his creation He is intimately aware of what is going on The Lord watches over you the Lord is your shade at your right hand The Sun will not harm you by day nor the moon by night and the picture here taking from the sort of the physical realm that pictures God is shade now for those of us who have lived our whole lives here in the Maritimes shade is a nice thing But it's not crucial because we don't get some that often But go to the Middle East and Shade becomes a life and death thing So to say that God is the one who gives you shade It's he's the one who gives comfort and protection for you So the Sun cannot harm you by day and the Jewish commentators would say that refers to the things that you know are threatening you You see them coming Nor the moon by night those things you didn't see coming That come out of the dark to you that God is able to shield his people and give care in both of those situations Now is he saying that you will face no challenges? You will have no difficulties of course not because the children of Israel face difficulties and challenges even when they were walking with the Lord They still had to stand against their enemies God gave them victory He gave them strength, but they still had to go out and they had to toil So if someone is saying oh this song means that I can walk through the world And I will have no concern about disease and I'm not going to wash my hands Don't put the Lord your God to the test wash your hands as a side note It concerns me greatly how many people of late have gone?
Oh, I've got to run out and buy soap We were not washing your hands before That's that's a general if anything good that comes out of this is that we all realize we were supposed to be washing our hands in the first place That will be a benefit The Lord is your shade at your right hand the Sun will not harm you by day nor the moon by night The Lord will keep you from all harm He will watch over your life the Lord will watch over you're coming and going both now and forever more Because of our security in Christ if we know Jesus Christ and have experienced his salvation. I am in the Lord You are in the Lord There is nothing that is going to happen to you or I that is out of his control. He will give me strength He will give you strength. He will give me peace.
He will give you peace to walk through whatever you have to walk through In this world and it is that perspective that changes everything In a world that is beginning to be wrapped by fear Yesterday we were out the kids and I went out to Fisherman's Cove to go for a walk because it was such a beautiful afternoon And of course you're walking along the walk there at Fisherman's Cove and the wind was blowing really hard So I figured you know was blowing all the germs away anyway And so we're walking along and everybody's walking like this They sort of glancing you know what when you actually said hello and smiled It was like a great weight was lifted off because all of these people in their fear in their concern just to have someone say hello to them And remind us that you know we're not all isolated and to be it genuinely Pleasant because you know no matter what happens I am with the Lord was talking to a brother Lord last week who works with people Who are being checked for the virus and somebody said how does it make you feel? I mean I was gonna make you feel I'm doing my job Said I can't lose what's the worst thing that can happen to me next week? I'm with the Lord That's the worst thing that can happen to me not that we want to run out and do something radical to ourselves But the fact is there is no worst case scenario for a believer in Christ We serve we minister to one another and if the worst thing that can happen in this world is the Lord says I'm gonna use this to take you home There is no worst case for us Because he is promised he will watch over our lives The Lord will watch over you're coming and going both now and forever more Think of those though for whom this life is it all they think they have is this life all they think they have is their own prowess is their own strength is their own resolve This is a terrifying time We're even something as simple as Costco has no toilet paper Something's just mean is this the end of the world? I think I take a few more things if you would turn with me now to the New Testament to the gospel of Luke as We set our perspective or better allowing the Lord to set our perspective Now we look at our provision Luke chapter 12 Jesus is speaking to those following him verse 22 Then Jesus said to his disciples therefore I tell you do not worry about your life What you will eat or about your body what you will wear life is more than food in the body more than clothes Consider the Ravens they do not sew or reap they have no storeroom or burn yet God feeds them and how much more valuable you are Then birds who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life since you cannot do this little thing Why do you worry about the rest?
You ever notice when Jesus is speaking makes the comment how many of you can add one more hour to your life and the answer is none of us Can we can do you know healthy things and stuff like that? But really the Lord or Danes when we live and when we die? We don't have the power to change that though. We at times think we do and Jesus says if you cannot do this very little thing Why do you worry about the rest?
I've ever reading that just as past week and being struck by that that Jesus says if you can't do this very little thing You ever think of that you know continuing your life to God is a very little thing. It's not hard thing for God for us It's a totally out of our control But not for God so he says why do you worry about the other things? Why do you worry about the other things? Consider how the lilies grow they do not labor or spin yet I tell you not even Solomon and all his splendor was dressed like one of these if that is how God closed the grass of the Field which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire how much more will he clothe you of little faith and do not set your Heart on what you will eat or drink do not worry about it for the pagan world runs after all such things and your father knows that you need Them but seek his kingdom and these things will be given to you as well Do not be afraid little flock for your father has been pleased to give you this kingdom Sell your possessions and give to the poor provide persons for yourself that will not wear out a treasure in heaven that will not be Exhausted where no thief comes near and no moth destroys for where your treasure is there at your heart will be also This becomes both an encouragement to us and provision and a challenge to us how many Moments may we have in this time to do like everybody else's oh I could be on quarantine I must run out and I must buy all the canned goods.
I must run out and buy all the toilet paper I must run out and buy these things and not think about okay What do I need conceivably if as they're saying if for 14 days you have to stay at home I saw people with cards with enough canned goods to last them for six months And it's like what are you doing? And of course in that person's panic and fear to provide for themselves when now the next 20 people have nothing to get Because that person is so concerned like it says like the pagans who run after all these things because that's all they know they have Not us We trust God in our provision. We act wisely, but we know that the most important thing is what we have in Christ And how that will play out? We need to realize that ultimately our provision comes from the Lord and I don't say that lightly our provision comes from the Lord He is the one who provides for us.
He is the one who moves us. He's the one who meets our needs He's the one who cares for us. We need to see that and then we need to see our practice if you turn to acts to we see the practice of this Acts chapter 2 a very familiar passage the birth of the church Starting in verse 42 They devoted themselves to the apostles teaching and to the fellowship and to the breaking of bread and to prayer Everyone was filled with awe and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles all the believers were together and had everything In common selling their possessions and goods they gave to anyone as he had need every day They continued to meet together in the temple courts They broke bread in their homes and they ate together with glad and sincere hearts Praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people and the Lord added to their number daily those who are being saved so knowing our perspective That God is in control That God intimately is aware of our situation and cares for his people knowing our provision is in the hands of God What should our practice be? Well, I would encourage you to say our practice should be what it has always been called to be That we love one another that we minister to one another This means first and foremost that we are aware of the needs of our brothers and sisters That we are offering encouragement to one another and if the encouragement means we stand six feet away and go I want to give you a hug, but right now.
I'm told I'm not allowed air hug as Silly as it is we do that however, I would say to you This past week teaching in junior high school We didn't have any concern about coronavirus But we had a stomach flu that was going through the school and I'm sitting in my class of 19 great 7th watching this kid slowly Wilft in the front row and seeing that that wonderful glow that comes from feverishness and going over to my you okay I don't think so mr Michaels, you know you touch his forehead like ah, yes, you're not okay and going and taking him down to the office and coming back one day I had four kids during the course of the day who went down one after the other and you know what? Each one of those kids needed somebody to walk alongside them put an arm around them and say it's gonna be okay And that was probably not the healthiest thing to do But that's what we do in the church as we come alongside So I would say to you I would challenge you Be caring for one another Checking on one another our people's physical needs being met, you know I've been making jokes about it all the way along, but it's not it's a first world problem, but we still consider it a problem Check on your brothers and sisters in Christ if they're out at toilet paper and you happen to have a lot then guess what you make a delivery Check on make sure people have the meals do people need to get to appointments and you are healthy and you are able then we do that If you're feeling sick stay home, but let your brothers and sisters know so they can pray for you But if you are well, we minister to the body and then once we have cared for the body Then we look beyond the body to care for those around us you say well, Stephen that sounds kind of radical Yes, it's what distinguished us as the church I've shared it before one of the documents It's interesting the talks about the church is a document found in Rome written by a Roman governor to the emperor in Rome Talking about a plague that was going through his region and he made the comment in his report about the house severe The plague was that the people who were healthy and were financially able were fleeing the city and going to their villas in the countryside and leaving the sick behind To die It said save for one group the followers of the way who not only remained in the city and cared for their own But they also cared for our people as well and the testimony made it all the way to Rome We wait to hear what's happening in the hospitals. You know who created hospitals, right? It was a ministry of the church that created the first hospitals that said we will care for the sick We will look after those who cannot look after themselves It was a ministry of the church long before the government ever took it over It was the movement to love one another So I would encourage you in your practice as the early church when you were able to assemble together do not deny the assembling of yourselves together I know it's been announced that groups should not be larger than 150 or is a boom for every small fellowship in the province So I said every big church should say Some of you go here and here's six other good fellowships happening in the region some of you go there And if they say you can't do that well, then get together with Those who live close to you in a smaller group if that's what we have to do but stay connected with one another Minister to the needs of one another and as the household of faith is cared for then care for those in your circle of influence Pray for them sincerely meet physical needs sincerely show them that you are not afraid Because someone will then ask you why aren't you?
And you can say because my hope is in the Lord and I know I can depend on him because he has saved me through the finished work of Christ And open the gospel and proclaim that while you wash your hands And while you do all those practical things because we accept practical wisdom But we still love one another we care for one another and we show them that there is a God greater than a virus Greater than government decisions greater than any of these things not only can he give you hope in the moment? But he can save you redeem you and give you hope for eternity Brothers and sisters, this is our opportunity to be who we're called to be That's what it is. It's not a reason to be terrified. It's an opportunity if you get the next two weeks three weeks off There's opportunities to love one another Whether you phone it whether you text it whether you write an old-fashioned letter and mail it or whether you feel healthy enough to walk up to the door and say Hey, how you doing toilet paper?
Do that and we'll see how the Lord will work in the circumstance. Let us pray Father we praise you for the finished work of Christ which gives us our living hope in him So that we do not need to fear Lord we praise you for your body the church Empowered by your spirit For your direction you have given us in practice to gather together to worship to fellowship to pray To learn to remember you through your death Lord be at work in us now Because we will hear things that will cause us fear Lord focus our perspective back on you there will be times Lord where we will forget that you are the source of our provision Or would forgive us for that and reset our focus on you and Lord that our practice would be to love one another in Real ways and then to show that love abroad to those around us always ready to give an answer for the hope that lies within us Lord give us those words give us those opportunities glorify yourself We would ask that through this People would not simply recover from a virus But that people would move from death to life Through experiencing the finished work of Christ Lord you are able to do this so we ask that you would do it in and through us for your glory in Jesus Christ amen