SHIELD ( 16/12/2012 )

16/12/2012 Sunday, Third Service

SHIELD

For the Lord is a sun and shield; the Lord will give grace and glory; no good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly. Psalm 84:11 Praise the Lord. Two weeks ago we meditated on the topic Sun from this same verse. We see over here our God who is likened not only to the Sun but also the Shield, which is used to defend and protect us from many dangers. Today we are going to meditate on the character of our God comparing him with that of a Shield. As always there is a condition for any promise even so for this we need to walk righteously in order to inherit all the blessing from God our Shield. Let us look into few places from the Bible where the word Shield is recorded and how our God is portrayed in that.

1. God who Strengthens / encourages You

Gen 15:1 God speaks with Abraham saying, "I am your shield, your very great reward”. The situation in which Abraham was into need to be looked into since he was with much fear thinking he might go childless. Perhaps he could have thought about what happened to Lot and kept worrying the same might happen to him. It is clear from the verse recorded at the beginning of this chapter. But after worst things happen in your life God will interfere in your life saying “Do not fear“ Abraham was very much tired that he did not even pray. We might be in the same situation but the Lord comes into our life as Shield and he will encourage and strengthen us. Sometimes we might think if the same worse thing were to happen in our life what would the implications and who would help us. We would have suffered a lot, but Lord is there for us when we walk uprightly. Dearly beloved the Lord wants to encourage you saying that He is your Shield to encourage you and to be your great strength.

2. God who Saves from Violence

II Samuel 22:3 My God is my rock….my shield….horn of my salvation…from violent men you save me. God not only saves from violence but also saves us from bitter and harsh words which come against us. When a danger is approaching people normally get ready and prepare to face it. But God expects us to pray to him with confidence. When God is with us even the insects cannot harm us i.e., even if mosquitoes bite they can never bring forth dengue fever. Many people will be very cautious and take every precautionary step to be hygienic. But God is our only refuge during all such perilous situations.

3. God who lift our head

Psalm 3:3 God who lift our head but you are a shield of around me…and lift up my head. This is a Psalm sung by David when he fled from his son Absalom. He was in a situation where he had to put his head down and put to shame. But David sang with confidence that God will enable him to walk confidently. He wrote this song when even though he was put to shame. Shimei also reproached him. But David put his head high as in Psalm 18:35 where he said, “you give me, shield of victory, & your right hand sustains me, you stop down to make me great”. Men will always be there to be-little us and join together and discourage us. But the Lord is always there to make us great. Are you also in a similar situation? In whichever place you were put to shame God will lift you up miraculously in the same place.

4. God who surrounds (or) compasses us

Psalm 5:12 …….. You surround him with your favor as with a shield... God surrounds us with His favor. When a child misbehaves never be a mother of annoyance but inherit the character of our God and surround them with compassion. A truly loving mother embraces her children when there is a danger for her them. Likewise our God is more than a mother who really who embraces us with His unfailing love. Psalm 91:4 says “He covers us with His feather” Wherever the word shield comes in the Bible there is embracing of God for His children. Our God who is with us is an embracing God.

5. God who honors us

Deuteronomy 33:29 He is your shield and helper We see over here Moses blessing all Israel. He gave all the blessings to Israel. He says who can be compared to Israel. Even so we are spiritual Israelite and many enemies can come against us, but this is what the Lord says, whatever way people may curse you but God will never allow that curse to work in your life . When God has blessed you, He will not allow anyone take those blessings. Moses says your enemies submit before you and you will trample down their high places. God has kept you in a blessed state and that is the reason why many covet. He will honor you and make you high above others. Those who talk against you would do so for just few days and God will quieten them so do not get angry over them. God is there for you keep confession one thing that “you are blessed”. We are the children of God who is incomparable and so no one can be compared to us, according to this verse. 15 more days are there for this year and God is going to honor you within this year. Be encouraged with these words