The Lord is My Portion - Pastor Stacey Shiflett
- Pastor Shiflett
- 4 days ago
- 6 min read
The Lord is My Portion
Lamentations 3:24 The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him.
Intro: I have had these verses on my heart for several days.
PORTION: portion, share, part, territory
The word portion has several uses in the Bible.
One was land or territory.
· Jeremiah 12:10 Many pastors have destroyed my vineyard, they have trodden my portion under foot, they have made my pleasant portion a desolate wilderness.
The other was a share, or part.
· 1 Samuel 1:5 But unto Hannah he gave a worthy portion;
· 2 Kings 2:9 And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me.
· Nehemiah 2:20 Then answered I them, and said unto them, The God of heaven, he will prosper us; therefore we his servants will arise and build: but ye have no portion, nor right, nor memorial, in Jerusalem. (to Sanballet, Tobiah and Geshem)
The third was related to food.
FIRST MENTION PRINCIPLE of the word PORTION:
· Genesis 14:24 Save only that which the young men have eaten, and the portion of the men which went with me, Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre; let them take their portion.
See also:
· Luke 12:42 And the Lord said, Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his lord shall make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of meat in due season?
· Daniel 1:8 But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s meat,
Interestingly, one verse has the word PORTION twice and refers to land AND food.
· Genesis 47:22 Only the land of the priests bought he not; for the priests had a portion assigned them of Pharaoh, and did eat their portion which Pharaoh gave them: wherefore they sold not their lands.
I want to focus on the food usage of the word tonight.
When I hear the phrase “the Lord is my portion,” I think of several things.
The statement “The Lord is my portion” is an…
I. Admiration of the Serving
· Psalms 34:8 O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.
Look at this!!
Today, people take picture of their food and post it on social media.
They text pictures of their plate at the restaurant.
Jeremiah is pointing to his plate and saying, “Look here!!! Look what I’ve got!!”
“Hey folks! Over here! My soul has a testimony. Ok, go ahead soul.”
“I just wanted to say, The Lord is my portion!”
I’ve been saved nearly fifty years, and I still cannot get over it!
Most things, once you’ve had it fifty years, it’s worn out, broken or needs to be restored.
He has been my portion for fifty years, and He’s more amazing to me now than He’s ever been.
· I’m still enthralled by His voice.
· I’m still humbled by His love for me.
· I’m still enamored by His constant attention to me.
· I’m still impressed by His words.
· I’m still grateful for every little thing He does for me.
· I’m still amazed at every little thing He does WITH me.
· I’m still in awe that He’s never once failed me or let me down.
· The Lord is my portion; and I still cannot believe it!!
The statement “The Lord is my portion” is an…
II. Admission of the Sustenance
The Lord is my portion is a public confession that I need Him.
For those that accuse me of using God for a crutch, I plead guilty!
As the songwriter said, “I can’t even walk without you holding my hand!”
I’ll be the first to admit that I can’t make it without Him.
Notice what David said about it:
Psalm 142
· 4 I looked on my right hand, and beheld, but there was no man that would know me: refuge failed me; no man cared for my soul.
· 5 I cried unto thee, O LORD: I said, Thou art my refuge and my portion in the land of the living.
· 6 Attend unto my cry; for I am brought very low: deliver me from my persecutors; for they are stronger than I.
· 7 Bring my soul out of prison, that I may praise thy name: the righteous shall compass me about; for thou shalt deal bountifully with me.
There was nowhere he could go.
He was not welcome anywhere.
He had no refuge; did not belong anywhere.
Nobody cared for his soul.
David cried out to God, and God became his refuge and his portion in the land of the living.
He closed out verse 7 with “thou shalt deal bountifully with me.”
When Peter was asked by Jesus if he wanted to leave, his answer was classic.
· John 6:68 Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.
The statement “The Lord is my portion” is an…
III. Affirmation of the Superiority
Psalm 16
· 1 Preserve me, O God: for in thee do I put my trust.
· 2 O my soul, thou hast said unto the LORD, Thou art my Lord: my goodness extendeth not to thee;
· 3 But to the saints that are in the earth, and to the excellent, in whom is all my delight.
· 4 Their sorrows shall be multiplied that hasten after another god: their drink offerings of blood will I not offer, nor take up their names into my lips.
· 5 The LORD is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot.
· 6 The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.
David said, “I don’t want what they’re having!”
I won’t eat what they’re eating.
I won’t drink what they’re drinking.
Reminds me of the three Hebrew children in Daniel 1.
Pulse and water in the will of God is ten times better!!
Beans and water with a clear conscience is ten times better!
Beans and water with clean hands is ten times better!
Nothing the devil comes close in comparison to what God has to offer!
· Psalms 84:10 For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.
God is better than anything or anybody.
He far exceeds anything the world or the devil has to offer.
He’s superior to false gods.
· Exodus 15:11 Who is like unto thee, O LORD, among the gods? who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders?
Jeremiah 10
· 10 But the LORD is the true God, he is the living God, and an everlasting king: at his wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to abide his indignation.
· 11 Thus shall ye say unto them, The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth, even they shall perish from the earth, and from under these heavens.
He’s superior to anything the wicked have to offer.
· Psalm 37:16 A little that a righteous man hath is better than the riches of many wicked.
· Psalm 20:7 Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the LORD our God.
The statement “The Lord is my portion” is an…
IV. Appreciation of the Sufficiency
Jeremiah makes it clear – God is all he needs.
Look at the text:
· 24 The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him.
· 25 The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him.
David echoed this very thing in Psalm 73.
Psalms 73
· 25 Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee.
· 26 My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.”
Conclusion: The point of this message is simple; if you have the Lord, you have all you need.