Soul Restoration

Soul Restoration

Introduction: I enjoy restoring things, whether its old vending machines, pop machines, old gas pumps, etc. There is something rewarding about bringing these old things back to life. It may be the nostalgia of an era long gone, or perhaps it is the thought of seeing what can be accomplished when thought and effort are applied, or perhaps it's a way to escape all the drama of social media. We have all seen those home make over shows where we see some dilapidated house in shambles and then after some hard work and creativity, the home has all the elegance and charm that welcomes a new family to a dream come true. Looking at something as it was and seeing what it has become is rewarding. What many do as a hobby, our Lord does as a part of his profession.

Our God is in the restoration business, He is definitely a god of restoration. He can restore all things, He can restore our bodies, as he did with the paralyzed man at Bethesda; He can restore our sight as he did with blind Bartimaeus; He can restore our hearing as he did with his enemy Malchus who lost his ear to Peter's sword; He can restore our minds as he did with the possessed man living among the tombs; He can restore nature itself; as he did when the storm that raged against the boat and he came out and said "Peace. Be still."; He can restore our resources as he did with the large quantity of fish that nearly broke the nets and nearly sank two boats; He can restore our finances like he did when the disciples went and got the coin out of the fishes mouth; He can restore our hearts, as he did when he said to God's people "I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh" and he can restore our lives as he did when he brought Lazaras back to life, after he had been dead three days; and He can even restore our very soul!

Transition: We read from the psalms of how God restores our souls. In Psalm 23:1-3 "The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside still waters, 3 'he restores my soul. ..."

I. Jesus restores our soul back to its original responsibility

Notice How he starts this Psalm? He begins with "The LORD is my Shepherd" It is our responsibility to stay near the shepherd.

Our soul only needs to be restored if our soul has been neglected. If you leave your lawn mower, or car, or a chainsaw or atv out in the rain, snow, and heat and never use it or bother to work on it, the more difficult it will be to use it once you decide to do so; after being neglected for so long, it will eventually be reclaimed by nature itself. There is an old saying "the longer you are out of church the harder it is to get back in."

During an episode of American Pickers - The two friends looking for treasures in old barns and buildings to resale in their store, came across a friendly old couple, Jan and Sandy who lived in South Dakota. In the back of their barn under a mountain of dirt and trash was an old Auburn car (stopped being made in 1937). A deal was made that if the car was restored it would be driven back and let the old man drive it one last time. After being restored in Broken Arrow, Ok the old Auburn was on its way back to South Dakota where the old man had already passed away.

After years of neglect we shouldn't wait another moment to have a soul restored for it might be too late

The fact that David is praising God for restoring his soul, tells us that his soul was in need of restoration. And tells us that our soul at times is in need of restoration also. David says the LORD is my shepherd, there is not another creature that is so easily lost than a sheep.

If you are prone to stray, you are also prone to getting lost or worse getting devoured by the wolf that stalks our souls. It isn't merely the careless souls the Devil tries to destroy but all of the souls on earth. If he can get them he will. He is not intimidated by those who have walked with God a long time. If he had the audacity to tempt God in the flesh, not once but three times, it should be obvious that he is not afraid to tempt us. He coms up with the most ingenious devises and the most tempting lures to steal you away from the good shepherd.