HE CAN DEFEND THE DEFENCELESS
MEMORISE: I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Psalms 91:2
READ: John 10:7 -14
7 Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep.
8 All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them.
9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
11 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.
12 But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep.
13 The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep.
14 I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.
MESSAGE
It's a very frightful thing to be defenseless in a hostile world. When a man is sick, he runs to the doctor for defense but what do you do if the doctor says, "There is nothing more we can do for you". If a man is in financial problems, he may run to the bank with the hope of borrowing some money to come out of the mess he is in; but what would he do if the bank says they cannot help him? It's a terrible thing to feel forsaken by relatives and friends, but the worst kind of helplessness comes when the Pastor says, "l have prayed all the prayers l know and there is nothing more l can do for you". Thank God that at that moment, there is somebody who is called the 'Defense of the defenseless'. Psalm 46:1 says:
God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
No matter how big any trouble is, God is there to defend you,
Once in a while, we face opponents that are too big for us to handle on our own. At such times when we feel defenseless, God is always there to defend us, so long as we belong to Him. During one of our Holy Ghost Services, God told me to tell someone in the congregation that he should not worry, he will laugh last. Apparently, there was a young man in the congregation who had just received a disengagement letter in his workplace. He came from the office straight to the programme with that letter, crying for God to help him. By Monday, all those who ganged up against him to be sacked were sacked and he was prompted.
In John 10:11 He is called the Good Shepherd.
John 10:12 says:
But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep.
The hireling referred to in the Bible reading for today is the devil. If you put yourself under his care, when the troubles of life come at you like wolves, he will leave you alone, once you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, you will come under the protection of the Good Shepherd, and He will defend you whenever an enemy comes against you.
REFLECTION
Are you under the protection of Christ?
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Amos 5- Obadiah 1
HYMN 28: WHEN WE WALK WITH THE LORD
When we walk with the Lord
in the light of his word,
what a glory he sheds on our way!
While we do his good will,
he abides with us still,
and with all who will trust and obey.
Refrain:
Trust and obey, for there's no other way
to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.
2 Not a burden we bear,
not a sorrow we share,
but our toil he doth richly repay;
not a grief or a loss,
not a frown or a cross,
but is blest if we trust and obey.
3 But we never can prove
the delights of his love
until all on the altar we lay;
for the favor he shows,
for the joy he bestows,
are for them who will trust and obey.
4 Then in fellowship sweet
we will sit at his feet,
or we'll walk by his side in the way;
what he says we will do,
where he sends we will go;
never fear, only trust and obey.
