Tuesday, 6 October 2015

Gatekeepers and Watchmen - Part Two

Tweet

In the sermon I am sharin with you we are looking at the role of watchmen and gatekeepers - in biblical times, today and in our lives as believers. Today we begin to look at what the idea of having a shomer, a guard, in our lives looks like for us.

Your body is a house - the Temple of the Holy Spirit. In Psalm 141:3, David prays, "Set a guard, ADONAI, over my mouth. Keep watch over the door of my lips." The guard is a shomer, a gatekeeper; the one watching is the tzarah, a watchman.

So far, so good; but what does that actually look like?

Remember, the watchman peers into the distance - are you on the lookout for what's about to come into your mouth, or out of it? The gatekeeper opens or close the gate - but that shomer has to work together with the one in charge, the one who calls the shots about what goes into the mouth ... if I would just let HaShem put a guard in my mouth ... that might lead to better decisions about what I put in it.

And there is good news!

How many of you need HaShem to set a guard over your mouth to check what comes out? Good news! Psalm 121:8 promises, "ADONAI will watch over (or guard, yishmar) your coming and your going from this time forth and forevermore." That is, if you let Him.

Just remember, security requires teamwork.

you need to work together with the Holy Spirit of God, and it requires alertness - you need to be alert for what's about to come in or out (paying attention the Holy Spirit, who is on the lookout for you) - and it requires discernment - with the Ruach's help, you can tell the different between what is good or bad for you (and others whom God loves).

You can read or listen to the whole sermon here and don't forget to come back here in a couple of days for Part 3.