Ps.65:9-13, "Crowned the Year with God's Grace" Sunday Sermo…

Ps.65:9-13, "Crowned the Year with God's Grace" Sermon & Bible Study material

65:9-13, 9.You care for the land and water it;
you enrich it abundantly.
The streams of God are filled with water
to provide the people with grain,
for so you have ordained it. 10, You drench its furrows and level its ridges;
you soften it with showers and bless its crops. 11, You crown the year with your bounty,
and your carts overflow with abundance. 12, The grasslands of the wilderness overflow;
the hills are clothed with gladness. 13, The meadows are covered with flocks
and the valleys are mantled with grain;
they shout for joy and sing.

<Sermon Summary>
The Feast of Barley Harvest is a season to look back on the past and give thanks for God's grace. Gratitude is not offered only after abundant results have been obtained, but is a confession of faith in believing that God will continue to provide for us in the future. The text proclaims that all the abundance in our lives begins with God's grace.

1. let us give thanks that God first sought us out and cared for us(V.9). Before we sought God, He first loved and upheld us. He visited Adam and Eve, who had sinned in the Garden of Eden. He also visited and cared for Moses and David. Jesus sought out His disciples, cared for them, and entrusted them with a mission. *Let us meditate on Jesus's visitation and care while looking at the footprints in the sand(see illustration). Let us give thanks to God, who prepares everything necessary for our lives today and supplies us with grace.

2. Let us give thanks that God causes us to grow even in unseen places(V.10). Just as a seed takes root in the ground, God molds faith even amidst times of waiting and refinement. We must trust in God's invisible hand more than in visible fruit. In China, the Moso bamboo is almost invisible for four years after the seeds are planted. However, in the fifth year, sprouts emerge and grow rapidly, reaching 20 meters in height within a few weeks to form a dense bamboo forest. Our faith is like this. It may seem as though our prayers, the Word, and service are bearing no fruit. However, God deepens the roots of our faith and causes it to grow and mature in unseen places. Like Jesus, who came as “a single grain of wheat,” fell to the ground, died, and bore much fruit(Jn.12:24), let us wait patiently&prepare so that we may be used by God. *Gal.6:9: “Do not become weary in doing good; if you do not give up, at the proper time you will reap.”

3. let us give thanks that God has crowned the year with grace(V.11). “The year is crowned with Your favor; drops of oil fall on Your paths.” We remember what we have lost, but “God makes us look back on the grace that has protected us.” Let us live giving thanks to God, who crowns us with His grace not just for a day or two, but for a year—no, for our entire lives. Joseph’s imprisonment, Ruth’s sorrow, and Job’s suffering all ultimately led to God’s good plan. Let us not view Jesus’ cross as a failure, but look to the glory of His resurrection. Even if it appears to be a failure, gratitude is not a calculation, but a life of discovering God’s grace. Let us give thanks to God, who is still beautifully completing this year.

4. let us give thanks that God’s grace ultimately leads to praise&worship(vs.12–13). “They all shout for joy and sing.” This concludes not with human songs, but with the praise of the fields, mountains, and valleys. The greatest gratitude of the Harvest Festival is not for the abundant harvest, but for the saving grace of Jesus Christ, who became a single grain of wheat(Jn.12:24), died on the cross, and resurrected. I bless you to become saints who trust in God’s goodness and live lives of gratitude and praise for the remainder of the year.

Prayer/Father God, rich in love and grace, we thank You for the great grace You have bestowed upon us over the past six months. Grant that we may trust in You to the very end, Lord, who seeks us out first, works in unseen places, and crowns the year with Your grace. May we live the remainder of this year with faith rather than worry, and with gratitude rather than resentment; may we always remember the grace of the cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ, who is a single grain of wheat, and glorify You through our lives. We pray in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Amen.

<Bible Study Material> Ps.65:9-13, God Who Crowns the Year with Grace

Theme: God cares for us, causes us to grow, perfects us with grace, and leads us to a life of thanksgiving and praise.

Introduction/The Harvest Festival is a season to look back on the past half-year and remember God's grace. A person of faith first remembers the grace God has bestowed. This passage shows that God is behind the abundant harvest. Let us give thanks today for God's grace in caring for us, our families, our church,&our workplaces.

1. God Comes First to Care for Us(V.9) "He cares for the land&waters it, making it very fertile...He gives them grain." Just as a farmer tends to a field, God comes to the land first to water& prepare it. Our faith is the same. We did not seek God first; rather, the Lord came to us first. God who sought out Adam&Eve, Moses,&David. He is Jesus, the Good Shepherd who sought out the disciples and the lost sheep(Lk.19:10). *Reflection/When did you most deeply experience God seeking you out first? What grace has God cared for you over the past six months? Application/Record one grace received each day in your notebook. Go out to those in need first &share your love.

2. God makes us grow even in unseen places(V.10)
"The Lord has watered the furrows abundantly... and blessed the sprouts." A seed takes root in the ground for a long time. Although invisible to the eye, the most important growth takes place during that time. The Moso bamboo in China appears to grow almost nothing for four years. However, after taking deep root during that time, it grows to tens of meters in a short period in the fifth year. God, too, does not let our time of prayer, the Word, and obedience be in vain. Jesus also said, "Every grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, but it produces much fruit"(Jn.12:24). Gal.6:9 says, "Do not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time you will reap a harvest if you do not give up." *Reflection/When did you most deeply experience God seeking you out first? Application/Continue with the Word and prayer, trusting the process rather than the result. Choose the faith to wait for God's timing.

3. God completes our year with grace (V.11)
"You crown the year with Your favor." The phrase "crown" means that God beautifully concludes the year and completes it with blessings. The Bible reveals a God who bestows grace to the very end. Joseph became Prime Minister after his time in prison(Gn.41). Ruth became the ancestor of David after her sorrow(Ruth4). Job received greater blessings than before after his suffering(Job42). Above all, although Jesus's cross seemed like a failure, it became the greatest victory through His resurrection. We remember our failures, but God completes our lives with grace. Application/Let us choose gratitude over resentment. Let us believe that God is still completing my life.

4. God's grace ultimately becomes thanksgiving&praise(Vs.12–13): "They all shout for joy&sing." The passage concludes with a scene where not only people but also the mountains, fields, and valleys praise God. The greatest gratitude of the Harvest Festival is not for the abundant grain. It is for the saving grace of Jesus Christ, who became a single grain of wheat, died on the cross, and resurrected. For those who have experienced Jesus' grace, gratitude becomes their life, and praise becomes their daily existence. Application to Life: Let us begin and end the day with a prayer of thanksgiving. Let us share words of gratitude with our family and neighbors this week.
Conclusion: We see the farmer's labor, but behind him, God sends rain, causes the seeds to grow, and brings forth fruit. Today's passage teaches us four kinds of grace. 1.God comes to us first to care for us. 2.He causes us to grow even in unseen places. 3.God crowns our year with His grace.
4.He leads our lives to thanksgiving&praise. As we celebrate the Harvest Festival, let us look to God who gives blessings rather than to the blessings we have received,&I hope that we become believers who live the remainder of the year with gratitude&faith.

Resolution: I will remember&give thanks for the grace of God coming to us first. I will trust in God's work even when it is unseen. I will trust that even in difficult situations, God will complete my life by His grace. I will give glory to God every day through thanksgiving and praise.
Practices for this week: Write down 5 things to be thankful for,&give thanks for Jesus' sacrifice while meditating on Jn.12:24.

Prayer: Father God, rich in love&grace, thank You for caring for us&providing for our needs during the past six months. We praise You, Lord, for working even in moments we do not realize, causing our faith to grow,&for beautifully crowning our year by Your grace. Help us to always remember the love of Jesus Christ, who became a grain of wheat to die&rise again for us,&grant that we may live the remainder of this year with gratitude rather than resentment,&with faith rather than fear. May our lives become praise that exalts God,&may we become channels of blessing that share the grace we have received with our neighbors. We pray in the name of Jesus Christ, who saved us. Amen.