Sermon Central
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A Soft, Stone Pillow
Contributed by Jerry Shirley on Aug 9, 2007 (message contributor)
Summary: This one verse contains a very SURE promise, a very SWEEPING promise, and yet a very SELECTIVE promise. Only God could make a rock solid promise into such a soft pillow for tired hearts. Link included to formatted text, audio, video, PowerPoint.
A Soft Stone Pillow
http://gbcdecatur.org/sermons/SoftStonePillow.html
A man was asked, “What color are the Pastor’s eyes?” “I don’t know,” he replied, “when he prays he closes his eyes, and when he preaches, I close mine.”
There’s nothing that helps me sleep better than a soft pillow. My wife recently found us 2 nice, soft, down filled pillows and she put those cotton t-shirt pillowcases on them, and we’ve never slept so good. A hard pillow doesn’t do it for me. Jesus may have had to use a stone as a pillow as did many in those days, [Mt. 8:20] but I believe I was born in this century for a reason, and that must be it. Now, it cannot be TOO thin of a pillow, it needs to have some substance to it that my head can ease down into. In college I had one that was too soft and I would sink all the way thru it and smother, so I had to put a textbook under it…but at least then I could honestly tell my teachers I had been on my homework all night!
Some of you are almost asleep now after hearing all of this! But our goal is to experience the rest and comfort God has for our souls, no matter what we may be going thru right now or in the future.
We all have problems. Some of our problems are because of our humanity.
Yet man is born unto trouble, as the sparks fly upward.
Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble.
Some problems are because of our Christianity. When you got saved you became the devil’s enemy, and he doesn’t want you to succeed. But God is now your ally, and you can have victory!
Some problems are minor and some are major. For example, you’re late for work and the car won’t start. This is minor. You put in new carpet and spill something on it. Well, it’s aggravating, but it’s not the end of the world. You burn the roast, or you’re overdrawn on your checking account, or whatever…daily minor problems are a part of life.
But other problems are major. A doctor’s report can bring devastating news. Your business can go bankrupt. You can be abused or treated unfairly. Your spouse can leave you for someone else. An accident can take away a loved one and bring tragedy.
Now, if you’re saved and you know it, say Amen.
If so, then there’s something else you can know, and it’s good news:
There’s always a plan, a purpose, a reason, and God is still in control. He’s at work in our lives, working His perfect will, and He works it all together for good!
I believe that Rom. 10:13 is the greatest promise in the Bible, but after you’ve claimed that promise, I believe that Rom. 8:28 is the next greatest promise for you to claim. R.A. Torrey called this verse ‘a soft pillow for a tired heart.’ But it’s also a stone pillow…a rock that will not roll!
1. This is a very sure promise.
“And we know…”
It’s not, we hope this is true, or we think this is true, but we KNOW this is true! This is an absolute, rock solid promise inspired by the Holy Spirit of God, who cannot lie, and you can stake your life on it.
a. We can know this promise is true by examination.
Our God has always passed the test. He aces every test. We can trust God because He is trustWORTHY! Faith isn’t always blind. Faith should be based in reason to some degree. Evolutionists have faith, believing that a large explosion brought everything into existence. They have more faith than I do, and it’s a very unreasonable faith, I might add. But I have a reasonable faith, based on evidence, even if it’s the evidence of things not seen [Heb. 11:1]. God has showed us enough in the light that we can then trust Him in the dark, walking by faith and not by sight.
Ill.—How many have a trusted family physician? How many have been to a doctor and you didn’t believe they had your best interests in mind? You end up w/ a doctor who has earned your trust. They have a reputation for caring about you, and so even when they tell you bad news, you accept it, and trust they have a plan for you from here.
And so we should allow the Great Physician to show us what is wrong in us, to diagnose our situation, and to change our diet or prescribe something different, or to do radical spiritual surgery if needed…and in the end we can know that the prognosis is good!
