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…In 1620, the Pilgrims made a difficult 65-day, late-Fall crossing of the
turbulent north Atlantic Ocean. They came to the New World to escape
religious persecution in England. Of the original 102 passengers, 4 died
before they reached America, 1 died the day before they landed at Plymouth
Rock.
…Most terrible of all, one half of the rest died during that first winter,
which Governor Bradford called, “the starving time.” Only 16 men survived and
all but a few women perished.
…In the late Fall of 1621, those remaining celebrated a 3 day feast to give
thanks to the Lord for His goodness to them. Also present at this were about
90 Indians from the local tribe.
…Psalm 107 was dearly loved by the Pilgrims, for they thought it told of their
plight.
TWO REASONS
YOU MUST NOT REMAIN SILENT, BUT THANK THE LORD FOR HIS GOODNESS…For
how much gratitude is sufficient for the deliverance from the power of sin,
death, and Hell?
I. God’s
Many Wonderful Deliverances Should Invoke Our Thanksgiving. (vv.1-32)
A. We
are summoned: “Give thanks to the Lord.” We are to declare His goodness and
love.
…this is not for all people, it is for the “Redeemed.” You must thank God and
tell others that our God is so good! God delights when His children praise
Him before others.
B. The
REDEEMED have overwhelming reasons for declaring the GOODNESS of the Lord. (4
here)
1.
God is to be thanked
for providing HOMES for the homeless. (vv. 4-9)
…The Israelites wandered about the wilderness…homeless. They prayed…God
heard!
…The Pilgrims had been hunted by the government, and many lost their homes.
They were homeless until Plymouth.
…There is a real sense that we were “homeless” until found by God. He is our
dwelling.
2.
God is to be thanked
for setting the Prisoners FREE. (vv.10-16)
…The Israelites had become captives by the Babylonians because of sin, (v.
17) Again, they cried out to the Lord, and God answered them by setting them
free! 19-20
…Many of the Pilgrims had been arrested in England and jailed for long
periods…They were jailed for merely dissenting from the State church of
England.
…Jesus spoke of our being delivered from the “prison house of sin.” ( Luke
4:18) We too ought to give continual thanks to the Lord for delivering us.
3.
God is to be
thanked for HEALING the sick of their diseases. (vv 17-22)
…God sent illness to His disobedient children…to humble them…(v. 17) Some of
these were even near death. (v. 18) They prayed and God heard…(v. 19)
…Of those Pilgrim’s who survived that first winter, most were plagued with
sickness.
…In Christ, and through His Word, God has “healed” our spiritual diseases.
4.
God is to be
thanked for the SAFETY He gave to those on the high seas. (vv23-30)
…To many, these are the most beautiful words of the Psalm.
…A
storm at sea is a very scary thing. The Pilgrims knew this.
…The storms are any time you have been at the end and cried out to God, and He
delivered you.
The four REFRAINS calling us to give God thanks, tell us that
there
is
nothing so becoming the children of God as public acknowledgement of God’s
favor and goodness to them!!!!!
II. God’s
Wonderful Control Of All Things Should Invoke Our Thanksgiving.
(33-42)
…When nations are prosperous they should recognize the gracious hand of God,
for they OWE their ALL to His blessing!!!!
A. The
Psalmist ends with a humble acknowledgement of God’s control over all things,
reminding us that even the “bad times” of life are in God’s hands. God at
times sends us hardships and sorrows to draw us close to Him. Notice the
images given to depict this: (vv. 33ff)
…life has its pain and tragedies, even for the Christian. We are not always
“delivered” ….
B. How
should we respond to God during the lean times?
…We ought to have reverence for God. Look for the eternal things.
Repentance? Thanks!!!
LESSONS FOR OUR LIVES:
1. If you
are a Christian, thank the Lord and tell others of His goodness.
2. God answers
prayers...if you are in trouble now...cry out to the Lord for help!! God
helps!!
3. Things in life
don't just happen of themselves, they are proof of God's sovereignty and wise
providence.
4. Life for the
Christian has ups and downs...but the end of all things is not down but up!! The
best is yet to come!!
5. Today...God is
still delivering from sin...come to the Savior...confess your sin and receive
Him!!
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