Psalm 42:1 5, Luke 15:3 7 Psalm 23:3 Soul Restoration How many of you have discovered HGTV? It s the home and garden channel on TV. It has become a very popular channel in our household, mainly due to the interest of one of our household members that would be my wife! There s property brothers, love it or list it, there s tiny house and the one that she watches most often: Fixer Upper with Chip and Joanna. The success and popularity of these shows have to do with the fascination of taking a home that may be run down and in great disrepair and then restoring it usually in a pretty dramatic way. What makes the shows so interesting is the creative ways those who do the restoration and how they make significant changes to these houses. It s amazing how they are able to see the potential in a home that is in such bad shape and transform it into such a beautiful home. Well, the good news of the Gospel is that God is in the work of restoration. It is a primary message of Scripture and fundamental to our understanding of who God is and what God wants to do in our lives. God is a God who restores and transforms. Today we look at the third verse of the 23 rd Psalm. He restoreth my soul. He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name s sake. We live in a day where we earnestly pray for God s intervention. We pray for a restoration of understanding among people, people of different races and backgrounds. We pray for a restoration that would transform us from being a people of anger and hate to be people of love and justice. As we say in our pledge of allegiance, may we be a nation with liberty and justice for all. And even as we pray for that kind of restoration and healing in our land, and in our world, we know that true restoration will not be fully realized unless God does a work in our hearts individually. For when we are changed personally, we have the potential to make a change in others. Like we sing; Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me. We have been speaking of the shepherd s care. And David, who knew a lot about shepherding utters these words. He restores my soul. He leads me in the paths of righteousness. Obviously David knew about the need for restoration. David, who was much loved by God, when through periods of feeling dejected, hopeless, cast down and defeated. So he would cry out in the words we heard this morning: Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why so disturbed within me? If we were to continue reading in this Psalm, he cries: I say to God, my Page 1 of 6
rock, Why have you forgotten me? Why must I walk about mournfully as a deadly wound in my body, my adversaries taunt me, while they say continually, Where is your God? You hear the pain he feels in his cry. Why are you cast down, O my soul. Why so disturbed within me? In the realm of shepherding Philip Keller says there is such a thing as a cast sheep or a cast down sheep. It is the old English shepherd s term for a sheep that has turned over on its back and cannot get up again by itself. A cast sheep is a pretty pathetic sight Its lying on its back, feet in the air, struggling frantically to stand up without success. Sometimes it will bleat a little for help, but generally it just lies there lashing about in frightened frustration. And what happens is that these gases build up within the sheep s body and if the shepherd does not arrive within a reasonably short time, the sheep will die. That s why it s important for the shepherd to keep a close eye on his flock he counts them everyday and if a sheep is missing, his first thought is: one of my sheep is cast somewhere. Our granddaughter just attended a summer Christian camp, the same camp where I was once dean of the camp when my kids were little. I don t know if they do this anymore but one of the things the counselors would do during the day is the procedural head count. There might be a hundred children there, but they are all gathered together just to make sure all children are accounted for. They actually have a special drill they follow if they suspect a lost camper. There is a signal code R, the name of the camper is given, and the counselors have assigned areas to search. If the lost camper is found, 2 whistles are sounded to call the search off. Phillip Keller recalls the number of times of counting sheep and discovering one missing for sheep like to go astray. He would hurry as fast has he could, knowing that every moment could be critical for the sheep s survival. Not only was there the danger of the sheep being cast, but also the danger of others who watch for cast sheep, like coyotes, and cougars, and vultures. And so he would run and more and often than not he would see the missing sheep in the distance, down on its back, lyig helpless. He s hoping he s not too late. And he would find that sheep cast down and he would need to restore it to its feet.massaging its legs until the sheep once again could stand. This is part of the drama that we read about in today s gospel about the ninety and nine. The shepherd s longing to find his missing sheep. Page 2 of 6
And the joy and delight of finding it and restoring it back to its feet and back to the flock. Being cast is not unique to sheep. If we are honest with ourselves, we know being cast is part of our human condition. Before we turn to Jesus, we are in that cast condition. Lost, without hope, until the Savior finds us. He comes to offer us forgiveness and God s love, seeks to restore us and by his grace reconciles us with God. It is the message of verse two of the hymn we sang (at 8:30 & 11) Sin and despair, like the sea waves cold, threaten the soul with infinite loss; grace that is greater, yes, grace untold, points to the refuge the mighty cross. God s grace that pardons, that forgives, and restores us into a right relationship with God. And when we experience that new life in Jesus Christ, the Scripture says there is great rejoicing in heaven as one who is lost is found. I want to say to you this morning, if you feel that is you, one of God s missing sheep, that God is seeking you out and wants you to be in a relationship with Him, and bring you the joy and peace of knowing this loving Shepherd. And God calls you to know his love, experience his forgivness and find that peace and joy of being in a relationship with the Lord. But I also want to say this morning, that it s possible for a follower of Jesus to find yourself in that cast position. Yes, you are a disciple of Jesus, but life s burden and challenges can get you down. Maybe seems overwhelming. And can even knock us off our feet. And we feel like a cast sheep.. And we get down and we cry like David, Why are you cast down, my soul, why are you disturbed within me? Remember how the gospel reminds us that Jesus looked at the people with compassion it says because they were like sheep without a shepherd. Today you and I can look to Jesus the Good Shepherd who is concerned about cast sheep. This is the life ministry of Jesus. Picking up cast sheep. Healing the leper, associating with the tax collectors and sinners, offering forgiveness and grace. The good news of the gospel is if you are feeling cast down this morning Jesus has come to restore you, to get you back on your feet. Sheep become cast for a number of reasons. Sometimes they re looking for a soft spot to lie down, a rounded hollow in the ground and they fall in and tumble over. For the follower of Jesus Christ, there is also the danger of becoming too comfortable in our spiritual life. Maybe we want to find the that soft place, the easy road, that comfortable positition, where we become less diligent about Christian Page 3 of 6
devotion. We are influenced by our culture s push to have the easy life and we fall prey to this take it easy mentality in our Christian disciplines and our spiritual growth. And what happens is we are off our guard, when the powers of this world and the temptations of life try to snare us and the next thing we know we are like a cast sheep, feeling lost and helpless. Sometimes a sheep becomes cast just because they have been carrying to much wool or too much weight. Their wool can get heavily matted with mud, manure, burrs, and other debris or it may be carrying too much weight. All these things make it easier for the sheep to become a cast sheep. But that can be us. We too, carry the debris of the things we accumulate in this world. Those things that burden us, that weigh us down, those sins and bad judgments, those negative influences and wrong choices that we carry with us, that have deeply affected us and it can get to the point where we can t carry anymore. We are cast down. Whenever Phillip Keller found a cast sheep that had become that way because of its long and heavy fleece, he knew that the only solution was to sheer it clean. Phillip said it was not a pleasant process. But when it is over both the sheep and the shepherd are relieved. No longer is there the threat of being cast down. Rather there is the enjoyment of being set free from a heavy coat. What a relief to get rid of it all. Do you feel like you re carrying those things that have weighed you down, causing you to feel cast down. We can carry those things of the world: Greed, anger, lust, deceit, prejudice, an unforgiving or critical spirit And the gentle Shepherd knows your heart This loving Shepherd who needs to apply the keen cutting edge of his Word and at first it may seem unpleasant, we might even struggle and kick about, but what a relief when we make the decision to experience God s grace, God s work in our hearts what a restoration. Now he can lead me again to those right paths. I was reading the testimony of Anne Wooldrige of York, England describing her journey of faith. The seeds of her faith were sown at weekly Sunday school sessions at her home church. Her parents sent her there even though they were not churchgoers themselves. Anne later attended a weekly group for teenagers at a church in York, which was experiencing a period of revival. Anne said: "I first became a Christian at the age of sixteen. "A couple of years later I went to Page 4 of 6
university and gradually moved away from God after becoming more interested in boys and partying. I totally lost my faith and didn't go to church for about ten years." Anne was married during that period and gave birth to the first of her two children but she still felt there was something missing from her life. "After so long in the spiritual wilderness I wasn't sure what I believed any more," she said. "I decided that if there was a God it would be the most amazing thing in the world so I set out to discover if it was true once and for all." Anne's journey of rediscovery saw her try to make sense of it all by quietly attending her local Anglican church every Sunday. She also regularly met up with a Christian friend to discuss spiritual matters. "Gradually I came to realize that I couldn't have all the answers but I did have the faith to believe that God was real," she said. "After recommitting my life to Christ I began to get to know him more deeply through reading the Bible and prayer. He has become very real to me." Anne said her faith was vital in getting her through a distressing miscarriage and later when her husband of 18 years left the family to move abroad. "When you become a Christian it doesn't mean that everything works out perfectly for you," she said. "When I lost the baby it was the worst thing that I've ever experienced, but God was with me throughout. "At my most painful moments I believe he sent someone to comfort me and I felt carried along by other peoples' prayers and care. If anything the experience strengthened my faith." After predicting she would always remain single, Anne found love again at her church. She married a property developer married six years ago and they now run Christian summer holiday camps together for children aged nine to eleven. Anne said she is "amazed" at how God has provided for her. She says: "I have absolute faith that God adores me and I spend my life trying to stay on the path he lays before me." To me that is a beautiful story of how continues with us in our journey of faith. And even when we go astray, he seeks us and wants to bring us back into the fold. This morning if you find yourself feeling like that cast sheep I invite you to turn I faith to the loving Shepherd. David knew firsthand what is was to have fallen away from God. In his prayer of repentance and turning back to God he prays these words in Psalm 51. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Do not cast me Page 5 of 6
from your presence Restore to me the joy of your salvation, What a joy to know the Shepherd who picks us up, puts us back on our feet. Puts us on the right path. He restores my soul, He leads me in the paths of righteousness for his name sake. Thanks be to God for the Shepherd who restores our life! Page 6 of 6