This is the slideshow of Ghana pictures that was shown at church on Sunday.
If you were not there, make sure to get the cd so you will know the stories behind the pictures.
I hope this blesses you!
Eileen
July 19: Whispers and Shouts
What Matters Most
If you have been reading this blog from week to week, you have probably detected a little repetition, a little recurrence, a little reiteration of a fundamental truth: Any endeavor that you undertake in your Christian walk depends entirely on your having a dynamic, personal, and intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. Each week’s message has hinged on this foundation. As the weeks of the summer have gone by and as messages and ideas have accumulated in this blog, those messages have continued to tie back to Jesus and our relationships with Him. For our church, last week represented a culmination of sorts. With the return of the Ghana mission team, we were able to see the result of something we had long prayed for and expected. The team of missionaries that went to Ghana had spent hours, weeks, and even months praying and preparing for the trip. Likewise, those of us at Mountain East who did not go to Ghana had invested much time into the team’s preparation. Sunday’s service, which included a report from three of the missionaries, represented a culmination and a product of this summer’s labor. And, it should be no big surprise that their testimonies echoed the same theme that this summer’s sermons have been speaking all along: the single most important thing in this life is having a real relationship with Jesus.
Before Kathy, Courtney, and Heather spoke about their most recent West African experience, Nancy read from Matthew 10:27-39, a passage in which Jesus instructs his followers on how serve Him in the world. This passage gives us an idea of what we can expect in our own relationships with Jesus today.
A Relationship with Jesus: What is it like?
It involves communication
The scripture gives many indications that the Lord speaks to those people who belong to Him. Before sending his disciples out to serve people, Jesus said to them, “What I tell you in the darkness, speak in the light; and what you hear whispered in your ear, proclaim upon the housetops” (Matthew 10:27). We can expect Jesus to tell us things too. Moreover, we can expect for Him to tell us things that are meant for us individually. When someone whispers in your ear, he or she is sharing something with you that no one else is hearing. Likewise, Jesus has specific things to share with us as individuals, things to whisper into our ears. A relationship with Jesus is one involving communication.
It is life-preserving
Matthew 10:28 indicates that Jesus saves us from the destruction of our soul. We should therefore hold our relationship with Him in high regard and cherish it as much as we cling to our lives themselves. He brings life to our soul and rescues us from certain destruction.
It means you are cared for and regarded as important
From some of Jesus’ words, we understand that in His time, sparrows were not worth very much to men. In fact, in the marketplace, a person could buy two sparrows for a cent. “And yet,” Jesus said about these sparrows, “not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father” (10:29). Sparrows are so numerous and worthless to men that they are worth a half of a cent, but God values each one of them. He is so concerned about them that if something happens to alter their life, He is aware of it and cares. Jesus uses this example to make the point that our Heavenly Father cares even more about us and will protect us. “Therefore, do not fear,” Jesus reassured his followers, “you are of more value than many sparrows” (10:31).
It is a relationship with One who knows you better than you know yourself
Not only does God protect and care for us; He knows us intimately. In verse 30, Jesus says to his followers that in contrast to the sparrows that are sold for half a cent, “the very hairs of your head are all numbered.” In other words, if God pays enough attention to us to know how many hairs are on our head at any given moment, He certainly knows what is going on in our lives and is looking out for our well being. How lucky are we to have a relationship in which we are so highly regarded!
It requires things of us
A relationship with Jesus cannot be taken lightly. Jesus does require things of us if we follow Him. Jesus explains, “Everyone therefore who shall confess Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever shall deny Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven” (10:32-33). In order for Jesus to claim us as His own before God, we must be willing to claim Him as our Lord before people. Our relationship with Him cannot be a secret that we keep from others. We must be willing to openly express how we feel about the Lord. If we are ashamed to acknowledge that we know Him, He will not acknowledge that He knows us when we are brought before God in judgment.
It divides people
In verse 34, Jesus states, “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.” This statement can be hard to reconcile in our minds, since so many other passages in scripture talk about Jesus bringing peace. The truth is that Jesus brings peace and division. Before we are in a relationship with Jesus, we are divided from God and belong to the world. Once we give our lives to Jesus, we have peace with our Heavenly Father and are no longer separated from Him by sin. This means that we shift our allegiance from the world and its systems to God and His kingdom. Our hearts change, our values shift, and everything is different because we have a new owner to whom we are devoted. This upsets family members sometimes, especially if they are not devoted to God themselves. So within a household of people who love one another, you could have two very different allegiances represented – one to the world and one to God. This is a type of division. Jesus doesn’t want us to be unaware of this. When we have a relationship with Him, it sometimes separates us from other people because we no longer have some fundamental things in common.
We must value it above all other relationships
Jesus goes on to explain that if we truly desire to have a relationship with Him, we cannot be afraid of the division that this relationship may cause. Ultimately, we must trust Him and know that He loves us enough to work out all of those things that concern us, even family relationships. If we would follow Him, we have to love Him and be devoted to him even more than we are to our own family members: “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me” (10:37). In her message, Nancy said that Jesus was trying to make a point about the devotion that we should have for Him. We all understand being devoted to our family members. For the most part, they are the people we hold dearest. In this passage, Jesus is saying that we should love Him even more than this.
It requires us to pick up our own cross
Having a relationship with Jesus will cause us to suffer sometimes, but it is not without reward. Jesus explained to his disciples, “He who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me” (10:38). Just as Jesus suffered in doing His Father’s will, we will sometimes be required to suffer in order to do what is right. But Jesus Himself did not suffer without purpose. His death on the cross brought all of us eternal life, and He was resurrected after He died in obedience to God’s will. Likewise, we will experience new life after our suffering, and it will bring good to other people. At the end of this passage, Jesus promises new life to those who lay down their lives to follow Him: “He who has found his life shall lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake shall find it” (10:39). Jesus’ resurrected life is a promise to us that when we suffer in order to follow Him, the suffering will not last forever, and it will be followed by renewed hope and life.
Ghana Team: Fruit from a Real Relationship with Jesus
As she introduced the Ghana missionaries on Sunday, Nancy returned once again to Matthew 10:27, in which Jesus tells his disciples to shout and “proclaim on the housetops” what they “heard whispered in secret.” Each one of the team members has a personal relationship with Jesus, and for each of them, the desire to go to Ghana started with God whispering in their ears. So what ended as a very visible, widely followed mission trip started out as private word whispered in their hearts individually by God. Along with the desire to go to Ghana, God also gave each person an idea of what they had to offer to the people in Ghana. Their “offerings” in Ghana were as unique and as individual as their relationships with their God. But each was needful and vital to the team’s work as a whole.
Courtney: God Gives Us Our Own Identities
Courtney’s testimony on Sunday began with an explanation of how she had been approaching the trip to Ghana prior to leaving. She explained to us that when she went to Ghana a year ago, she was one of three teenagers on a team mostly made up of adults. On this trip, however, God made sure that she saw herself not as a teenager, but as an adult. For some time before the trip, Courtney said, God had been teaching her about having her own walk with Him. She was a little nervous about this trip because she would be the only younger person going, and, in her own words, she couldn’t “go there and be a teenager.” She went on to explain some of her prior apprehensions: “John and Rich and Kathy had been walking with the Lord for much longer than I had, and I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to measure up.” On this trip, God made Courtney understand that she has a special relationship with Him, one that is as valuable as the ones He has with those adults she looks up to. God encouraged Courtney to recognize that she hears from Him, and He also showed her that her individual relationship with Him benefits others: “When it came time to pray, [God] was giving me his words, the things he wanted me to pray. . . I didn’t have to worry about what Ruth needed because [God] knew what she needed and he knew what I needed to say.” Courtney came back to the U.S. with a number of things, but perhaps the most important is the knowledge that God does not see her as just a teenager. As she concluded her testimony, she explained that she came away from the trip understanding this: “I shouldn’t feel like my walk with God should look like Heather’s or Kathy’s or Rich’s because it’s not theirs; it’s mine and God’s and it’s good for it to be that way.”
Kathy: God Changed my Life
If Courtney’s testimony spoke of God’s ability to define a relationship with Him, Kathy’s testimony spoke of His power to redefine a relationship with Him. On Sunday morning, Kathy testified of the great work that God did in her leading up to the Ghana trip. She explained that before she began preparing for Ghana, she was a Christian, but she didn’t have a close, personal walk with the Lord like she does now. In order to draw her closer to Him and show her the big plans he had for her, God had to take her through a “wilderness” of sorts by allowing her to suffer some losses, such as the loss of her job. While it may have looked like a horrible situation at the time, losing her job was pivotal in Kathy’s relationship with God. In dealing with her fearful situation, she was forced to relate to Him without the security of her own self-sufficiency to fall back on. “To prepare me for the good things that God was about to do in my life, I had to leave behind the familiar, the comfort of past successes, and bag of tricks that got me through anything. I had to surrender everything. I surrendered my life,” Kathy told us. As an encouragement to us, she concluded by saying, “My God is faithful. He will do what he says He will do. And when he wants to take you into the wilderness to get the Egypt out of your heart, surrender and let Him. You will never regret it.”
Heather: Passionate Devotion to Christ
As Heather prepared for the Ghana trip, she began asking the Lord what she was to do in Ghana. Where would she serve? Whom would she serve? What would her service be? As she continued asking these questions, Rich told her that one of the focuses of their ministry to the pastors in Ghana was defining discipleship – explaining what it means to follow Christ. Taking this topic into consideration, Heather began to search and ask the Lord to speak to her about what discipleship meant, all the while asking Him for direction on what to “do” while in Ghana. One day, while reading a daily devotional, God whispered into her ear: “Heather, it’s not what you do; it’s who you are. It’s who you are in Christ. It’s not what you do for Him”
These whispered words became the basis of what Heather proclaimed to the Ghanaian pastors and what she testified to us. She explained to us that following God lies not in our actions but in our heart’s devotion. If we are devoted to the person of Jesus, she explained, the actions and the service of a disciple will naturally follow. Our “doings” will be an overflow of our love and passionate devotion to Jesus. “To me,” Heather said, “THAT is what makes a disciple – a REAL relationship with Christ, and He wants that for each of his children. No matter where you are, He wants to speak to you; He wants to pour His life into you.”
Conclusion: Is It Worth It?
Jesus’ explanation of discipleship in Matthew 10:27-37 contains some difficult statements: following Jesus will bring us trouble with those around us, following Jesus will bring suffering, and following Jesus means we have to surrender all that is dearest to us. These promises can be hard to accept. Giving our lives to Christ will cost us something, and we shouldn’t be naive about that. But for anyone who has ever looked into Jesus’ eyes and seen His love there, for anyone who has experienced the thrill of hearing God’s voice call his or her name, the rewards far outweigh the costs. Walking with Jesus Christ and having a REAL relationship with Him changes a person and works wonders in his life that are inexplicable to those looking on. We saw a little of the “wonder” that God works in the returning Ghana team. In her statement below, Nancy describes that inexplicable touch of Christ that she saw on the faces of Courtney, Heather, Kathy, and Rich when they arrived home from West Africa:
Let’s talk about how exciting and glamorous a mission trip to Ghana is – 10 hour trips in a hot crowded truck on slow roads with many delays and no fast food along the way. Food and water that might make you sick. Poverty that will break your heart to see. Losing sleep. Working hard. Serving many people with few resources. Little privacy. Sacrificing pleasure, vacation time, money, and recreation to do it. But this team has this reality: God’s rewards are better than earthly pleasures. Experiencing His power and His presence and watching Him in real, tangible ways. That is a great reward!
How else can someone spend thousands of dollars and two weeks time to be hot, sick, uncomfortable, tired, and used, and then come home with a glow on their faces, excitement in their hearts, a strong peace, increased faith, a sense of wonder, and great satisfaction in what they have done?
Scriptures Referenced in the Sermon and Testimonies
Matthew 10: 27-39
Psalm 32:7-8
Habakkuk 3:17-18
John 21:16
John 12:24
If you have been reading this blog from week to week, you have probably detected a little repetition, a little recurrence, a little reiteration of a fundamental truth: Any endeavor that you undertake in your Christian walk depends entirely on your having a dynamic, personal, and intimate relationship with Jesus Christ. Each week’s message has hinged on this foundation. As the weeks of the summer have gone by and as messages and ideas have accumulated in this blog, those messages have continued to tie back to Jesus and our relationships with Him. For our church, last week represented a culmination of sorts. With the return of the Ghana mission team, we were able to see the result of something we had long prayed for and expected. The team of missionaries that went to Ghana had spent hours, weeks, and even months praying and preparing for the trip. Likewise, those of us at Mountain East who did not go to Ghana had invested much time into the team’s preparation. Sunday’s service, which included a report from three of the missionaries, represented a culmination and a product of this summer’s labor. And, it should be no big surprise that their testimonies echoed the same theme that this summer’s sermons have been speaking all along: the single most important thing in this life is having a real relationship with Jesus.
Before Kathy, Courtney, and Heather spoke about their most recent West African experience, Nancy read from Matthew 10:27-39, a passage in which Jesus instructs his followers on how serve Him in the world. This passage gives us an idea of what we can expect in our own relationships with Jesus today.
A Relationship with Jesus: What is it like?
It involves communication
The scripture gives many indications that the Lord speaks to those people who belong to Him. Before sending his disciples out to serve people, Jesus said to them, “What I tell you in the darkness, speak in the light; and what you hear whispered in your ear, proclaim upon the housetops” (Matthew 10:27). We can expect Jesus to tell us things too. Moreover, we can expect for Him to tell us things that are meant for us individually. When someone whispers in your ear, he or she is sharing something with you that no one else is hearing. Likewise, Jesus has specific things to share with us as individuals, things to whisper into our ears. A relationship with Jesus is one involving communication.
It is life-preserving
Matthew 10:28 indicates that Jesus saves us from the destruction of our soul. We should therefore hold our relationship with Him in high regard and cherish it as much as we cling to our lives themselves. He brings life to our soul and rescues us from certain destruction.
It means you are cared for and regarded as important
From some of Jesus’ words, we understand that in His time, sparrows were not worth very much to men. In fact, in the marketplace, a person could buy two sparrows for a cent. “And yet,” Jesus said about these sparrows, “not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father” (10:29). Sparrows are so numerous and worthless to men that they are worth a half of a cent, but God values each one of them. He is so concerned about them that if something happens to alter their life, He is aware of it and cares. Jesus uses this example to make the point that our Heavenly Father cares even more about us and will protect us. “Therefore, do not fear,” Jesus reassured his followers, “you are of more value than many sparrows” (10:31).
It is a relationship with One who knows you better than you know yourself
Not only does God protect and care for us; He knows us intimately. In verse 30, Jesus says to his followers that in contrast to the sparrows that are sold for half a cent, “the very hairs of your head are all numbered.” In other words, if God pays enough attention to us to know how many hairs are on our head at any given moment, He certainly knows what is going on in our lives and is looking out for our well being. How lucky are we to have a relationship in which we are so highly regarded!
It requires things of us
A relationship with Jesus cannot be taken lightly. Jesus does require things of us if we follow Him. Jesus explains, “Everyone therefore who shall confess Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever shall deny Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven” (10:32-33). In order for Jesus to claim us as His own before God, we must be willing to claim Him as our Lord before people. Our relationship with Him cannot be a secret that we keep from others. We must be willing to openly express how we feel about the Lord. If we are ashamed to acknowledge that we know Him, He will not acknowledge that He knows us when we are brought before God in judgment.
It divides people
In verse 34, Jesus states, “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.” This statement can be hard to reconcile in our minds, since so many other passages in scripture talk about Jesus bringing peace. The truth is that Jesus brings peace and division. Before we are in a relationship with Jesus, we are divided from God and belong to the world. Once we give our lives to Jesus, we have peace with our Heavenly Father and are no longer separated from Him by sin. This means that we shift our allegiance from the world and its systems to God and His kingdom. Our hearts change, our values shift, and everything is different because we have a new owner to whom we are devoted. This upsets family members sometimes, especially if they are not devoted to God themselves. So within a household of people who love one another, you could have two very different allegiances represented – one to the world and one to God. This is a type of division. Jesus doesn’t want us to be unaware of this. When we have a relationship with Him, it sometimes separates us from other people because we no longer have some fundamental things in common.
We must value it above all other relationships
Jesus goes on to explain that if we truly desire to have a relationship with Him, we cannot be afraid of the division that this relationship may cause. Ultimately, we must trust Him and know that He loves us enough to work out all of those things that concern us, even family relationships. If we would follow Him, we have to love Him and be devoted to him even more than we are to our own family members: “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me” (10:37). In her message, Nancy said that Jesus was trying to make a point about the devotion that we should have for Him. We all understand being devoted to our family members. For the most part, they are the people we hold dearest. In this passage, Jesus is saying that we should love Him even more than this.
It requires us to pick up our own cross
Having a relationship with Jesus will cause us to suffer sometimes, but it is not without reward. Jesus explained to his disciples, “He who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me” (10:38). Just as Jesus suffered in doing His Father’s will, we will sometimes be required to suffer in order to do what is right. But Jesus Himself did not suffer without purpose. His death on the cross brought all of us eternal life, and He was resurrected after He died in obedience to God’s will. Likewise, we will experience new life after our suffering, and it will bring good to other people. At the end of this passage, Jesus promises new life to those who lay down their lives to follow Him: “He who has found his life shall lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake shall find it” (10:39). Jesus’ resurrected life is a promise to us that when we suffer in order to follow Him, the suffering will not last forever, and it will be followed by renewed hope and life.
Ghana Team: Fruit from a Real Relationship with Jesus
As she introduced the Ghana missionaries on Sunday, Nancy returned once again to Matthew 10:27, in which Jesus tells his disciples to shout and “proclaim on the housetops” what they “heard whispered in secret.” Each one of the team members has a personal relationship with Jesus, and for each of them, the desire to go to Ghana started with God whispering in their ears. So what ended as a very visible, widely followed mission trip started out as private word whispered in their hearts individually by God. Along with the desire to go to Ghana, God also gave each person an idea of what they had to offer to the people in Ghana. Their “offerings” in Ghana were as unique and as individual as their relationships with their God. But each was needful and vital to the team’s work as a whole.
Courtney: God Gives Us Our Own Identities
Courtney’s testimony on Sunday began with an explanation of how she had been approaching the trip to Ghana prior to leaving. She explained to us that when she went to Ghana a year ago, she was one of three teenagers on a team mostly made up of adults. On this trip, however, God made sure that she saw herself not as a teenager, but as an adult. For some time before the trip, Courtney said, God had been teaching her about having her own walk with Him. She was a little nervous about this trip because she would be the only younger person going, and, in her own words, she couldn’t “go there and be a teenager.” She went on to explain some of her prior apprehensions: “John and Rich and Kathy had been walking with the Lord for much longer than I had, and I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to measure up.” On this trip, God made Courtney understand that she has a special relationship with Him, one that is as valuable as the ones He has with those adults she looks up to. God encouraged Courtney to recognize that she hears from Him, and He also showed her that her individual relationship with Him benefits others: “When it came time to pray, [God] was giving me his words, the things he wanted me to pray. . . I didn’t have to worry about what Ruth needed because [God] knew what she needed and he knew what I needed to say.” Courtney came back to the U.S. with a number of things, but perhaps the most important is the knowledge that God does not see her as just a teenager. As she concluded her testimony, she explained that she came away from the trip understanding this: “I shouldn’t feel like my walk with God should look like Heather’s or Kathy’s or Rich’s because it’s not theirs; it’s mine and God’s and it’s good for it to be that way.”
Kathy: God Changed my Life
If Courtney’s testimony spoke of God’s ability to define a relationship with Him, Kathy’s testimony spoke of His power to redefine a relationship with Him. On Sunday morning, Kathy testified of the great work that God did in her leading up to the Ghana trip. She explained that before she began preparing for Ghana, she was a Christian, but she didn’t have a close, personal walk with the Lord like she does now. In order to draw her closer to Him and show her the big plans he had for her, God had to take her through a “wilderness” of sorts by allowing her to suffer some losses, such as the loss of her job. While it may have looked like a horrible situation at the time, losing her job was pivotal in Kathy’s relationship with God. In dealing with her fearful situation, she was forced to relate to Him without the security of her own self-sufficiency to fall back on. “To prepare me for the good things that God was about to do in my life, I had to leave behind the familiar, the comfort of past successes, and bag of tricks that got me through anything. I had to surrender everything. I surrendered my life,” Kathy told us. As an encouragement to us, she concluded by saying, “My God is faithful. He will do what he says He will do. And when he wants to take you into the wilderness to get the Egypt out of your heart, surrender and let Him. You will never regret it.”
Heather: Passionate Devotion to Christ
As Heather prepared for the Ghana trip, she began asking the Lord what she was to do in Ghana. Where would she serve? Whom would she serve? What would her service be? As she continued asking these questions, Rich told her that one of the focuses of their ministry to the pastors in Ghana was defining discipleship – explaining what it means to follow Christ. Taking this topic into consideration, Heather began to search and ask the Lord to speak to her about what discipleship meant, all the while asking Him for direction on what to “do” while in Ghana. One day, while reading a daily devotional, God whispered into her ear: “Heather, it’s not what you do; it’s who you are. It’s who you are in Christ. It’s not what you do for Him”
These whispered words became the basis of what Heather proclaimed to the Ghanaian pastors and what she testified to us. She explained to us that following God lies not in our actions but in our heart’s devotion. If we are devoted to the person of Jesus, she explained, the actions and the service of a disciple will naturally follow. Our “doings” will be an overflow of our love and passionate devotion to Jesus. “To me,” Heather said, “THAT is what makes a disciple – a REAL relationship with Christ, and He wants that for each of his children. No matter where you are, He wants to speak to you; He wants to pour His life into you.”
Conclusion: Is It Worth It?
Jesus’ explanation of discipleship in Matthew 10:27-37 contains some difficult statements: following Jesus will bring us trouble with those around us, following Jesus will bring suffering, and following Jesus means we have to surrender all that is dearest to us. These promises can be hard to accept. Giving our lives to Christ will cost us something, and we shouldn’t be naive about that. But for anyone who has ever looked into Jesus’ eyes and seen His love there, for anyone who has experienced the thrill of hearing God’s voice call his or her name, the rewards far outweigh the costs. Walking with Jesus Christ and having a REAL relationship with Him changes a person and works wonders in his life that are inexplicable to those looking on. We saw a little of the “wonder” that God works in the returning Ghana team. In her statement below, Nancy describes that inexplicable touch of Christ that she saw on the faces of Courtney, Heather, Kathy, and Rich when they arrived home from West Africa:
Let’s talk about how exciting and glamorous a mission trip to Ghana is – 10 hour trips in a hot crowded truck on slow roads with many delays and no fast food along the way. Food and water that might make you sick. Poverty that will break your heart to see. Losing sleep. Working hard. Serving many people with few resources. Little privacy. Sacrificing pleasure, vacation time, money, and recreation to do it. But this team has this reality: God’s rewards are better than earthly pleasures. Experiencing His power and His presence and watching Him in real, tangible ways. That is a great reward!
How else can someone spend thousands of dollars and two weeks time to be hot, sick, uncomfortable, tired, and used, and then come home with a glow on their faces, excitement in their hearts, a strong peace, increased faith, a sense of wonder, and great satisfaction in what they have done?
Scriptures Referenced in the Sermon and Testimonies
Matthew 10: 27-39
Psalm 32:7-8
Habakkuk 3:17-18
John 21:16
John 12:24
July 14: Whatever
“Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.” (Philippians 4:8)
Peace and Joy are Linked to a Healthy Thought Life
The book of Philippians, from which this week’s sermon was derived, is often referred to as “The Book of Joy.” Written by Paul during a brief stint in a Roman prison, this beloved letter teaches believers how to find joy and contentment in any circumstance, even the most daunting and distressing ones. Having joy and peace, Paul suggests, is largely determined by what we allow our minds to dwell on. Unfortunately, so many of us don’t experience the peace and joy that God wants us to have because we are burdened, worn out, and even tormented by toxic thoughts. In her message on Sunday, Nancy gently reminded us that our hearts and minds belong to the Lord and that we need to be diligent in watching over the thoughts that we allow to prosper there.
Food For Thought
In teaching us about our thought life, Nancy used an analogy that all of us readily understood: food. Food nourishes and feeds our bodies so that we can function both mentally and physically. In the same way, our thoughts nourish our minds. God intends for us to think on things that are “true. . . honorable. . . right. . . pure. . . lovely. . . [and] of good repute” (Philippians 4:8). Dwelling on these things will strengthen us and give us energy to function properly as believers. On the other hand, constantly ingesting and meditating on things that are not so can have harmful effects on our souls.
To continue the food/thought analogy, Nancy brought up her three-year-old grandson, Cody. Cody has severe food allergies, and his mother, Eileen, has trained him to be extremely discriminating when choosing what to eat. Even though he does not comprehend all of the science behind his body’s reaction to peanuts, soy, and other allergens, Cody does understand that some foods are “safe” for him to eat and others are not. So when he is unsure about a food’s safety level, he goes to his mother and asks her, “is this safe?” For Cody, unsafe food can result in a variety of physical ailments, ranging from an itchy, irritating rash to his throat closing up. Even in its mildest form, Nancy noted, eating unsafe food eventually makes Cody pretty miserable. Likewise, when it comes to our thought lives, entertaining thoughts that are harmful to us can result in as much misery as Cody’s ingestion of allergens.
The Origins of Thoughts
As we watch over our thoughts, it is important to understand that not every thought that we have originates from our own hearts. Thoughts come from different places. For example, sometimes, the Holy Spirit can place thoughts in our minds. This is one of the ways God communicates with us. The world around us also influences us and offers us attitudes, ideas, and thoughts. Of course, we do have some original thoughts ourselves, which probably comprise much of what goes through our head. But we also have an enemy, Satan, who offers us thoughts that usually serve to tempt us and torment us in some way. For example, in the Garden of Eden, Eve did not come up with the idea to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Satan very persuasively offered her that idea. Unfortunately, even though Satan’s idea was not her own, Eve chose to believe his words and to act on them, and we know what resulted from that. The point here is that sometimes, our thoughts do not originate within us. This leads to a question: if we cannot control which thoughts are offered to us, how can we be held responsible for our thought lives? The answer is simple -- we are not necessarily responsible for every thought that drifts through our mind, but we are responsible for whether or not we choose to entertain those thoughts and to dwell on them. I once heard someone say that we cannot control the birds that fly over our head, but we can make sure that those birds don’t build a nest in our hair. It is the same with our thought life. We may encounter many things and people in the course of a day, and several thoughts may be introduced to us that we cannot control. But we can control which thoughts we choose to hold onto and which thoughts we throw out. When sifting through those varying thoughts, attitudes, and ideas, we can apply the Philippians 4:8 litmus test: Is it true? Is it honorable? Is it right? Is it pure? Is it lovely? Is it of good repute? If not, it may be an unsafe thought which, if dwelt on, could make you pretty miserable.
It All Comes Down to This
Lest we become legalistic, Nancy was quick to point out that we should not approach our thought life as something that we can regulate on our own. “I don’t know about you,” she said, “but the more I try to capture and control my thoughts, the more ‘out of control’ they seem.” Having a fruitful thought life is not something we can do apart from our relationship with the Lord and with other believers. Only the Lord can determine what thoughts are beneficial for us to dwell on. Ultimately, as with any other spiritual endeavor, having a productive thought life requires a personal relationship with Jesus.
You Are What You Think
Continuing the food analogy, Nancy reminded us of the familiar expression, “you are what you eat.” While this classic adage most certainly did not come from the Bible, there is a Proverb that suggests we are what we think: “As he [a man] thinketh in his heart, so is he” (KJV, Proverbs 23:7). If we are what we think, shouldn’t we be more selective of our thoughts? Dieticians advise us to eat healthy portions from each of the basic food groups, so as a guide to healthy thinking, Nancy shared with us a list of “seven basic thought groups.”
Nancy was quick to add that this list is not exhaustive or all inclusive; good thoughts are certainly not limited to the categories on this list. After all, Paul told us to dwell on “whatever is true, whatever is honorable. . . ,” suggesting a vast horizon of thoughts that are safe for us. This list merely offers suggestions of safe thought categories. It is a helpful guide that will hopefully point us in the right direction as we endeavor to put Philippians 4:8 into practice.
Seven Basic Thought Groups for Healthy Thinking:
Peace and Joy are Linked to a Healthy Thought Life
The book of Philippians, from which this week’s sermon was derived, is often referred to as “The Book of Joy.” Written by Paul during a brief stint in a Roman prison, this beloved letter teaches believers how to find joy and contentment in any circumstance, even the most daunting and distressing ones. Having joy and peace, Paul suggests, is largely determined by what we allow our minds to dwell on. Unfortunately, so many of us don’t experience the peace and joy that God wants us to have because we are burdened, worn out, and even tormented by toxic thoughts. In her message on Sunday, Nancy gently reminded us that our hearts and minds belong to the Lord and that we need to be diligent in watching over the thoughts that we allow to prosper there.
Food For Thought
In teaching us about our thought life, Nancy used an analogy that all of us readily understood: food. Food nourishes and feeds our bodies so that we can function both mentally and physically. In the same way, our thoughts nourish our minds. God intends for us to think on things that are “true. . . honorable. . . right. . . pure. . . lovely. . . [and] of good repute” (Philippians 4:8). Dwelling on these things will strengthen us and give us energy to function properly as believers. On the other hand, constantly ingesting and meditating on things that are not so can have harmful effects on our souls.
To continue the food/thought analogy, Nancy brought up her three-year-old grandson, Cody. Cody has severe food allergies, and his mother, Eileen, has trained him to be extremely discriminating when choosing what to eat. Even though he does not comprehend all of the science behind his body’s reaction to peanuts, soy, and other allergens, Cody does understand that some foods are “safe” for him to eat and others are not. So when he is unsure about a food’s safety level, he goes to his mother and asks her, “is this safe?” For Cody, unsafe food can result in a variety of physical ailments, ranging from an itchy, irritating rash to his throat closing up. Even in its mildest form, Nancy noted, eating unsafe food eventually makes Cody pretty miserable. Likewise, when it comes to our thought lives, entertaining thoughts that are harmful to us can result in as much misery as Cody’s ingestion of allergens.
The Origins of Thoughts
As we watch over our thoughts, it is important to understand that not every thought that we have originates from our own hearts. Thoughts come from different places. For example, sometimes, the Holy Spirit can place thoughts in our minds. This is one of the ways God communicates with us. The world around us also influences us and offers us attitudes, ideas, and thoughts. Of course, we do have some original thoughts ourselves, which probably comprise much of what goes through our head. But we also have an enemy, Satan, who offers us thoughts that usually serve to tempt us and torment us in some way. For example, in the Garden of Eden, Eve did not come up with the idea to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Satan very persuasively offered her that idea. Unfortunately, even though Satan’s idea was not her own, Eve chose to believe his words and to act on them, and we know what resulted from that. The point here is that sometimes, our thoughts do not originate within us. This leads to a question: if we cannot control which thoughts are offered to us, how can we be held responsible for our thought lives? The answer is simple -- we are not necessarily responsible for every thought that drifts through our mind, but we are responsible for whether or not we choose to entertain those thoughts and to dwell on them. I once heard someone say that we cannot control the birds that fly over our head, but we can make sure that those birds don’t build a nest in our hair. It is the same with our thought life. We may encounter many things and people in the course of a day, and several thoughts may be introduced to us that we cannot control. But we can control which thoughts we choose to hold onto and which thoughts we throw out. When sifting through those varying thoughts, attitudes, and ideas, we can apply the Philippians 4:8 litmus test: Is it true? Is it honorable? Is it right? Is it pure? Is it lovely? Is it of good repute? If not, it may be an unsafe thought which, if dwelt on, could make you pretty miserable.
It All Comes Down to This
Lest we become legalistic, Nancy was quick to point out that we should not approach our thought life as something that we can regulate on our own. “I don’t know about you,” she said, “but the more I try to capture and control my thoughts, the more ‘out of control’ they seem.” Having a fruitful thought life is not something we can do apart from our relationship with the Lord and with other believers. Only the Lord can determine what thoughts are beneficial for us to dwell on. Ultimately, as with any other spiritual endeavor, having a productive thought life requires a personal relationship with Jesus.
You Are What You Think
Continuing the food analogy, Nancy reminded us of the familiar expression, “you are what you eat.” While this classic adage most certainly did not come from the Bible, there is a Proverb that suggests we are what we think: “As he [a man] thinketh in his heart, so is he” (KJV, Proverbs 23:7). If we are what we think, shouldn’t we be more selective of our thoughts? Dieticians advise us to eat healthy portions from each of the basic food groups, so as a guide to healthy thinking, Nancy shared with us a list of “seven basic thought groups.”
Nancy was quick to add that this list is not exhaustive or all inclusive; good thoughts are certainly not limited to the categories on this list. After all, Paul told us to dwell on “whatever is true, whatever is honorable. . . ,” suggesting a vast horizon of thoughts that are safe for us. This list merely offers suggestions of safe thought categories. It is a helpful guide that will hopefully point us in the right direction as we endeavor to put Philippians 4:8 into practice.
Seven Basic Thought Groups for Healthy Thinking:
1. Confession (safe) / Hiding Sin (unsafe)
Many of us spend a lot of time deceiving ourselves about our own sin. We try to cover it up and tell ourselves that it is not a problem. When we live in a “confession frame of mind,” we are aware of our shortcomings and quick to recognize them when they are pointed out. If we cultivate an attitude of confession, we will continually hold our shortcomings before the Lord and say, “God, I do not want this in my life; please help me.” Sometimes, it can even help to confess our sins to one another and receive prayer (James 5:16). Having a mindset of confession rather than of deception reminds us that we need a savior and keeps us dependent on Jesus and close to Him always. Living in this frame of mind is a safe, fruitful place for us.
2. Forgiveness (safe) / Resentment (unsafe)
Another safe “place” for our minds to dwell is forgiveness. Remembering that God has forgiven our sin is an uplifting thought that will bring us freedom and gratitude – gratitude that we have been forgiven and the freedom to generously give that same forgiveness to others. Of course, the unsafe counterpart for forgiveness is resentment. Resentment is unsafe because it ends up hurting the person holding on to it more than it hurts the person who is resented. Emil often says, “Holding onto a grudge is like taking poison and waiting for the other person to die.” Nancy explained that when she is having trouble forgiving someone, it always helps her to remember how much God has forgiven her. “It’s hard to resent someone else when you are appropriating the forgiveness that God has given you,” she pointed out.
3. Cleansing (safe) / Worldliness (unsafe)
When God rescues us from our sin through our belief in Christ, we are made clean. But there is day-by-day sanctifying process that continues to take place as we walk with Him after that point. As we get to know the Lord through reading His Word and through the Holy Spirit, He changes us, cleansing us of our sin and making us more like Him. The opposite of this cleansing process is worldliness. The Scriptures says, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing (or you could say cleansing) of your mind” (Romans 12:2). Our minds are transformed by God’s Word, which is like water that washes us clean. Meditating God’s Word and choosing to think scripturally instead of with a worldly perspective is safe for us.
4. Freedom to hear (safe) / Bondage (unsafe)
The truth is always a safe place to let our thoughts dwell. When we believe that God loves us and wants to communicate truth to us, we extend to Him the freedom to speak to us. Hearing Jesus’ truth sets us free (John 8:31-32). If we are unwilling to hear the truth, then we are essentially shutting our ears to the Lord Himself and we will not be open to hearing Him. In this condition, we will be susceptible to the lies of the enemy, which always lead to fear and bondage, freedom’s antithesis.
5. Praise (safe) / Complaining (unsafe)
Praise is simply telling God what he has done that is good. God loves to hear praise, and it an opportunity for us to recognize the part He plays in our circumstances. Recognizing Him in any situation always makes me feel loved and secure and chases away feelings of loneliness.
6. Worship (safe) / Addiction (unsafe)
Worship takes praise a little further. With worship, you are not only recognizing God; you are consumed with Him. You are showing Him your complete, undivided devotion. In worship, you serve God with a united heart, and nothing else has priority over Him. The negative counterpart to worship is addiction, which means that you are so consumed with something that it controls you. In contrast to the worship of God, which is always an edifying experience, addictions enslave people and can wreck both their bodies and minds.
7. Fellowship (safe) / Isolation (unsafe)
What are thoughts of fellowship? To have thoughts of fellowship is to maintain a mindset that you are part of the Body of Christ. Remembering that you belong to and are loved by the family of God is a healthy, beneficial thought to ponder. The opposite of this mindset is isolation. Thoughts of isolation tell you that you are sufficient on your own and don’t need anyone else. While isolation may seem appealing at times (after all, a life without relationships means a life without annoyances and conflict), isolating yourself can be a dangerous thing, making you more vulnerable to deception, loneliness, and the torment of the enemy. God doesn’t want us to have the mindset that we are all alone in the world.
Conclusion: Don’t Forget God’s Love for You
Embedded somewhere in Nancy’s message was a statement that seemed paramount. At some point, Nancy reminded us that we cannot try to apply this teaching without love. “This process [of disciplining your thoughts] must be combined with love,” she said. “It is a part of your relationship with God and the body of Christ.” We have to believe God sets boundaries for us because He loves us and wants only what is good to us. If we approach this message without understanding God’s love for us, it can just seem like a bunch of suffocating, restrictive rules designed to ruin our fun and limit us. But that is not who God is. He loves us and does not want to make us miserable. Rather, He designed our hearts and minds and knows what will make them thrive and what will make them sick. Just as Eileen watches over Cody’s diet because she loves him and knows what is best, God wants to help us watch over our thought diet. To draw a picture of the tender love that God has for us, Nancy shared a story about Cody and a cupcake:
Yesterday, I decided to make cupcakes. The cupcakes were in the oven when Eileen and Cody showed up at my house unexpectedly. Coming into the kitchen, Eileen asked, “are those cupcakes safe for Cody?” She looked at the box and determined that they were. Cody and Eileen stayed and visited for two hours while the cupcakes baked and cooled. Finally, the cupcakes were ready, and I’m over there preparing Cody’s cupcake, and I am so happy because I know this is going to make him happy. So I spread icing on the cupcake and put on the special star-shaped sprinkles; I put it on a plate, sit Cody at the table, and set the cupcake in front of him. And he’s sitting there with that cupcake, and I go back to the kitchen and am icing the rest of the cupcakes, and I looked at him, and God just spoke to me. And He said, “Nancy, the joy, the pleasure that you feel right now, knowing that you have given Cody something that is safe for him that he is just loving, that’s the joy that I take in preparing safe thoughts for you to think.”
Nancy ended her message with this encouraging reminder: “Your heavenly Father rejoices when you think about the things He wants you to think about and they bring you pleasure.”
Scriptures Referenced in Sermon
Romans 12:2
2 Corinthians 10:5
Philippians 4:6-9
Proverbs 23:7
1 John 1:9-10
James 5:16
James 4:17
Many of us spend a lot of time deceiving ourselves about our own sin. We try to cover it up and tell ourselves that it is not a problem. When we live in a “confession frame of mind,” we are aware of our shortcomings and quick to recognize them when they are pointed out. If we cultivate an attitude of confession, we will continually hold our shortcomings before the Lord and say, “God, I do not want this in my life; please help me.” Sometimes, it can even help to confess our sins to one another and receive prayer (James 5:16). Having a mindset of confession rather than of deception reminds us that we need a savior and keeps us dependent on Jesus and close to Him always. Living in this frame of mind is a safe, fruitful place for us.
2. Forgiveness (safe) / Resentment (unsafe)
Another safe “place” for our minds to dwell is forgiveness. Remembering that God has forgiven our sin is an uplifting thought that will bring us freedom and gratitude – gratitude that we have been forgiven and the freedom to generously give that same forgiveness to others. Of course, the unsafe counterpart for forgiveness is resentment. Resentment is unsafe because it ends up hurting the person holding on to it more than it hurts the person who is resented. Emil often says, “Holding onto a grudge is like taking poison and waiting for the other person to die.” Nancy explained that when she is having trouble forgiving someone, it always helps her to remember how much God has forgiven her. “It’s hard to resent someone else when you are appropriating the forgiveness that God has given you,” she pointed out.
3. Cleansing (safe) / Worldliness (unsafe)
When God rescues us from our sin through our belief in Christ, we are made clean. But there is day-by-day sanctifying process that continues to take place as we walk with Him after that point. As we get to know the Lord through reading His Word and through the Holy Spirit, He changes us, cleansing us of our sin and making us more like Him. The opposite of this cleansing process is worldliness. The Scriptures says, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing (or you could say cleansing) of your mind” (Romans 12:2). Our minds are transformed by God’s Word, which is like water that washes us clean. Meditating God’s Word and choosing to think scripturally instead of with a worldly perspective is safe for us.
4. Freedom to hear (safe) / Bondage (unsafe)
The truth is always a safe place to let our thoughts dwell. When we believe that God loves us and wants to communicate truth to us, we extend to Him the freedom to speak to us. Hearing Jesus’ truth sets us free (John 8:31-32). If we are unwilling to hear the truth, then we are essentially shutting our ears to the Lord Himself and we will not be open to hearing Him. In this condition, we will be susceptible to the lies of the enemy, which always lead to fear and bondage, freedom’s antithesis.
5. Praise (safe) / Complaining (unsafe)
Praise is simply telling God what he has done that is good. God loves to hear praise, and it an opportunity for us to recognize the part He plays in our circumstances. Recognizing Him in any situation always makes me feel loved and secure and chases away feelings of loneliness.
6. Worship (safe) / Addiction (unsafe)
Worship takes praise a little further. With worship, you are not only recognizing God; you are consumed with Him. You are showing Him your complete, undivided devotion. In worship, you serve God with a united heart, and nothing else has priority over Him. The negative counterpart to worship is addiction, which means that you are so consumed with something that it controls you. In contrast to the worship of God, which is always an edifying experience, addictions enslave people and can wreck both their bodies and minds.
7. Fellowship (safe) / Isolation (unsafe)
What are thoughts of fellowship? To have thoughts of fellowship is to maintain a mindset that you are part of the Body of Christ. Remembering that you belong to and are loved by the family of God is a healthy, beneficial thought to ponder. The opposite of this mindset is isolation. Thoughts of isolation tell you that you are sufficient on your own and don’t need anyone else. While isolation may seem appealing at times (after all, a life without relationships means a life without annoyances and conflict), isolating yourself can be a dangerous thing, making you more vulnerable to deception, loneliness, and the torment of the enemy. God doesn’t want us to have the mindset that we are all alone in the world.
Conclusion: Don’t Forget God’s Love for You
Embedded somewhere in Nancy’s message was a statement that seemed paramount. At some point, Nancy reminded us that we cannot try to apply this teaching without love. “This process [of disciplining your thoughts] must be combined with love,” she said. “It is a part of your relationship with God and the body of Christ.” We have to believe God sets boundaries for us because He loves us and wants only what is good to us. If we approach this message without understanding God’s love for us, it can just seem like a bunch of suffocating, restrictive rules designed to ruin our fun and limit us. But that is not who God is. He loves us and does not want to make us miserable. Rather, He designed our hearts and minds and knows what will make them thrive and what will make them sick. Just as Eileen watches over Cody’s diet because she loves him and knows what is best, God wants to help us watch over our thought diet. To draw a picture of the tender love that God has for us, Nancy shared a story about Cody and a cupcake:
Yesterday, I decided to make cupcakes. The cupcakes were in the oven when Eileen and Cody showed up at my house unexpectedly. Coming into the kitchen, Eileen asked, “are those cupcakes safe for Cody?” She looked at the box and determined that they were. Cody and Eileen stayed and visited for two hours while the cupcakes baked and cooled. Finally, the cupcakes were ready, and I’m over there preparing Cody’s cupcake, and I am so happy because I know this is going to make him happy. So I spread icing on the cupcake and put on the special star-shaped sprinkles; I put it on a plate, sit Cody at the table, and set the cupcake in front of him. And he’s sitting there with that cupcake, and I go back to the kitchen and am icing the rest of the cupcakes, and I looked at him, and God just spoke to me. And He said, “Nancy, the joy, the pleasure that you feel right now, knowing that you have given Cody something that is safe for him that he is just loving, that’s the joy that I take in preparing safe thoughts for you to think.”
Nancy ended her message with this encouraging reminder: “Your heavenly Father rejoices when you think about the things He wants you to think about and they bring you pleasure.”
Scriptures Referenced in Sermon
Romans 12:2
2 Corinthians 10:5
Philippians 4:6-9
Proverbs 23:7
1 John 1:9-10
James 5:16
James 4:17
July 5, 2009: Freedom
Saturday was the Fourth of July, a day traditionally set aside to celebrate the freedom that we enjoy here in the United States. As Rich reminded us on Sunday, we are fortunate to have the freedom to receive an education, to vote, and to worship God. In so many other nations, people are denied the freedom that we get to experience every day. However, as monumental as the freedom that we enjoy as citizens of the United States is, there is still a greater freedom available to us. In his message on Sunday, Rich talked about the freedom that Christ brings to the person who is willing to throw down everything – especially fear – and follow Him wholeheartedly.
To demonstrate this greater freedom, Rich used an unlikely character – Zaccheus. Zaccheus is described by Luke as a “notorious sinner” (NLT, Luke 19:7). A tax collector by trade, Zaccheus most likely made his money by extorting innocent people in the name of the government. Rich theorized that because Zaccheus was the chief tax collector, he was probably quite skilled at preying on the innocent. In short, Zaccheus was a scoundrel. When he encounters Jesus, however, a transformation takes place.
Rich explained that by the time Zaccheus encountered Jesus, Jesus was at the height of his public ministry, so Zaccheus had probably seen him from a distance or heard about him from someone else before that encounter. Perhaps Zaccheus had been convicted by the words of Christ, or perhaps he was beginning to be saddened and repentant over his devious actions of late. Either way, by the time we meet him in Luke 19, something is happening inside of his heart. The narrator explains that when Jesus entered Jericho, Zaccheus “was trying to see who Jesus was, and he was unable because of the crowd, for he was small in stature” (19:3). There is nothing unusual about Zaccheus’ wanting to see Jesus. An entire crowd of people was trying to do the same. What is unusual, Rich noted, was Zaccheus’ subsequent action: “he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree in order to see Him” (19:4). Rich explained that most men of Zaccheus’ age and social status would have been concerned with their image. Wealthy men did not typically run and climb trees, Rich pointed out. That would have been behavior reserved for children or madmen. But in this instance, Zaccheus wanted to see Jesus so much that he was willing to risk his reputation and image. This risk hints at the change taking place inside of Zaccheus.
When Jesus passed by Zaccheus’ tree, He did something that deeply touched Zaccheus: He called him by name. In his sermon, Rich noted the significance of this act. When someone calls us by name, we feel special. Immediately, our ears perk up and we listen more intently than before because someone has addressed us personally. We have been singled out of the multitude to receive a message that has been tailor-made for us. Zaccheus received this individualized treatment from Jesus. Though the space around Jesus was packed with needy people, all calling to Him and demanding His attention, Jesus’ focus was intently on Zaccheus: “Zaccheus, hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house” (19:5). This must have astounded Zaccheus and made him feel loved all at once. Of all the people in the town of Jericho, Zaccheus had been singled out. Jesus had the choice to spend time with almost anyone in the city, but He wanted to spend time with him.
When the crowd saw this exchange, they “began to grumble, saying, ‘He [Jesus] has gone to be the guest of a man who is a sinner’” (19:7). It is interesting to note that when Zaccheus hears the crowd calling him a sinner, he does not become defensive or angry. Rather, in the new light of Jesus’ love for him, he is free to admit he was wrong. In the next line of the passage, Zaccheus both admits to his sin and turns from it. Rich pointed out that there can be such freedom in admitting that we are wrong. Some people spend a very long time in the prison of pride, unwilling to admit their mistakes and wrongdoings. But when we are willing to acknowledge our wrongdoings and be sorrowful over them, we avail ourselves to God’s forgiveness and grace, which in turn changes our hearts: “Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret” (NIV, 2 Cor. 7:10). In Zaccheus’ case, his heart was truly sorry over his actions. He had been hurting others and hurting the God who loved him. Zaccheus turns from his ways at that point, stating to Jesus, “Behold, Lord, half of my possessions I will give to the poor, and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will give back four times as much” (19:8).
Rich explained to us that in his response to Jesus, Zaccheus not only had the freedom to admit that he was wrong; he also had the freedom to give. Zaccheus’ encounter with Jesus made him free. “Freedom,” Rich said, “means that we fear less and love more.”
Rich ended the sermon with a prayer. I was so touched by his prayer. I felt like it contained more truth than twenty sermons, so I wrote it down:
“Father, we thank You for your incredible love. Thank You that when we encounter that, it makes a radical difference. We are then free to look at some people and say, ‘you are forgiven,’ even when they don’t deserve it (but then again, neither do we [deserve forgiveness]). When we encounter Your love, we have the freedom to say, ‘Lord, it all belongs to You.’ We have the freedom to stretch ourselves and say, ‘I know my neighbor needs my time. My schedule’s so full, but he needs a gentle touch from You, Lord. I need to go and help him work on that project.’ When we encounter Your love, we have the freedom to live with a higher calling, a calling that You have for us. Father, thank You for all the freedom that You give to us.”
There is much that we can learn from Zaccheus’ story. Most importantly, though, we can get a picture of how Jesus feels about us. Ostensibly, it seemed like Zaccheus was pursuing Jesus. After all, he ran in Jesus’ direction and scaled a tree to see Him. Then he gave everything he had in order to follow the Lord. In reality, however, Jesus had been pursuing Zaccheus long before Zaccheus began pursuing Him. Jesus knew Zaccheus’ name long before He saw him up in that tree and long before the citizens of Jericho began calling Zaccheus a crook. Jesus knew Zaccheus before he was born and had been beckoning to him since day one, even when Zaccheus was steeped in the thickest mire of his sin. At all points during Zaccheus’ life, Jesus was there and loved him. He had been longing for the day that Zaccheus would finally turn from the behavior that was hurting him and others. In precisely the same way, Jesus longs for a relationship with us – one that is not hindered by our fear of looking foolish or our attachment to our possessions. He wants to make us free even more than we want to be free.
Scriptures Referenced in Sermon
Luke 19:1-10
2 Corinthians 7:10
To demonstrate this greater freedom, Rich used an unlikely character – Zaccheus. Zaccheus is described by Luke as a “notorious sinner” (NLT, Luke 19:7). A tax collector by trade, Zaccheus most likely made his money by extorting innocent people in the name of the government. Rich theorized that because Zaccheus was the chief tax collector, he was probably quite skilled at preying on the innocent. In short, Zaccheus was a scoundrel. When he encounters Jesus, however, a transformation takes place.
Rich explained that by the time Zaccheus encountered Jesus, Jesus was at the height of his public ministry, so Zaccheus had probably seen him from a distance or heard about him from someone else before that encounter. Perhaps Zaccheus had been convicted by the words of Christ, or perhaps he was beginning to be saddened and repentant over his devious actions of late. Either way, by the time we meet him in Luke 19, something is happening inside of his heart. The narrator explains that when Jesus entered Jericho, Zaccheus “was trying to see who Jesus was, and he was unable because of the crowd, for he was small in stature” (19:3). There is nothing unusual about Zaccheus’ wanting to see Jesus. An entire crowd of people was trying to do the same. What is unusual, Rich noted, was Zaccheus’ subsequent action: “he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree in order to see Him” (19:4). Rich explained that most men of Zaccheus’ age and social status would have been concerned with their image. Wealthy men did not typically run and climb trees, Rich pointed out. That would have been behavior reserved for children or madmen. But in this instance, Zaccheus wanted to see Jesus so much that he was willing to risk his reputation and image. This risk hints at the change taking place inside of Zaccheus.
When Jesus passed by Zaccheus’ tree, He did something that deeply touched Zaccheus: He called him by name. In his sermon, Rich noted the significance of this act. When someone calls us by name, we feel special. Immediately, our ears perk up and we listen more intently than before because someone has addressed us personally. We have been singled out of the multitude to receive a message that has been tailor-made for us. Zaccheus received this individualized treatment from Jesus. Though the space around Jesus was packed with needy people, all calling to Him and demanding His attention, Jesus’ focus was intently on Zaccheus: “Zaccheus, hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house” (19:5). This must have astounded Zaccheus and made him feel loved all at once. Of all the people in the town of Jericho, Zaccheus had been singled out. Jesus had the choice to spend time with almost anyone in the city, but He wanted to spend time with him.
When the crowd saw this exchange, they “began to grumble, saying, ‘He [Jesus] has gone to be the guest of a man who is a sinner’” (19:7). It is interesting to note that when Zaccheus hears the crowd calling him a sinner, he does not become defensive or angry. Rather, in the new light of Jesus’ love for him, he is free to admit he was wrong. In the next line of the passage, Zaccheus both admits to his sin and turns from it. Rich pointed out that there can be such freedom in admitting that we are wrong. Some people spend a very long time in the prison of pride, unwilling to admit their mistakes and wrongdoings. But when we are willing to acknowledge our wrongdoings and be sorrowful over them, we avail ourselves to God’s forgiveness and grace, which in turn changes our hearts: “Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret” (NIV, 2 Cor. 7:10). In Zaccheus’ case, his heart was truly sorry over his actions. He had been hurting others and hurting the God who loved him. Zaccheus turns from his ways at that point, stating to Jesus, “Behold, Lord, half of my possessions I will give to the poor, and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will give back four times as much” (19:8).
Rich explained to us that in his response to Jesus, Zaccheus not only had the freedom to admit that he was wrong; he also had the freedom to give. Zaccheus’ encounter with Jesus made him free. “Freedom,” Rich said, “means that we fear less and love more.”
Rich ended the sermon with a prayer. I was so touched by his prayer. I felt like it contained more truth than twenty sermons, so I wrote it down:
“Father, we thank You for your incredible love. Thank You that when we encounter that, it makes a radical difference. We are then free to look at some people and say, ‘you are forgiven,’ even when they don’t deserve it (but then again, neither do we [deserve forgiveness]). When we encounter Your love, we have the freedom to say, ‘Lord, it all belongs to You.’ We have the freedom to stretch ourselves and say, ‘I know my neighbor needs my time. My schedule’s so full, but he needs a gentle touch from You, Lord. I need to go and help him work on that project.’ When we encounter Your love, we have the freedom to live with a higher calling, a calling that You have for us. Father, thank You for all the freedom that You give to us.”
There is much that we can learn from Zaccheus’ story. Most importantly, though, we can get a picture of how Jesus feels about us. Ostensibly, it seemed like Zaccheus was pursuing Jesus. After all, he ran in Jesus’ direction and scaled a tree to see Him. Then he gave everything he had in order to follow the Lord. In reality, however, Jesus had been pursuing Zaccheus long before Zaccheus began pursuing Him. Jesus knew Zaccheus’ name long before He saw him up in that tree and long before the citizens of Jericho began calling Zaccheus a crook. Jesus knew Zaccheus before he was born and had been beckoning to him since day one, even when Zaccheus was steeped in the thickest mire of his sin. At all points during Zaccheus’ life, Jesus was there and loved him. He had been longing for the day that Zaccheus would finally turn from the behavior that was hurting him and others. In precisely the same way, Jesus longs for a relationship with us – one that is not hindered by our fear of looking foolish or our attachment to our possessions. He wants to make us free even more than we want to be free.
Scriptures Referenced in Sermon
Luke 19:1-10
2 Corinthians 7:10
June 28: The Fruit of God's Spirit
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self control . . . (Gal. 5:22)
The Secret of Bearing Fruit
For anyone who has ever been brought face-to-face with his or her own shortcomings, Sunday’s message was comforting, reassuring, and full of hope. Nancy began her message by confessing that in the past, whenever she heard a teaching on Galatians 5:22, she always felt discouraged. She knew she did not naturally possess the qualities mentioned as the fruit of the Spirit, and she felt so incapable of rising to the occasion. So in her message this week, she offered a solution to this type of discouragement. The secret to producing the fruit of the Holy Spirit can be distilled into a truth quite simple and fundamental: The traits listed as the fruit of the Spirit are all part of God’s character. In order to have a life full of the Holy Spirit’s fruit, you must first have an intimate, personal relationship with the Lord.
A relationship with the Lord involves getting to know Him -- not just academically, theologically, and intellectually -- but also personally and intimately. In the same way that people have defining qualities within their personalities, God possesses traits too. He has, without measure, the very fruit that is mentioned in Galatians 5:22. He is loving, patient, and faithful. In a relationship with Him, you will get a chance to experience this fruit first hand because He directs it toward you. The kindness is focused in your direction; the patience is extended toward you; the peace surrounds you, and the love makes you feel secure. Because these attributes are part of who God is, there is no way to know Him without being the beneficiary of them. When you have spent time “absorbing” this type of fruit, you will naturally have an abundance of it to share with others, and thus, the fruit of the Spirit will be evident in your life.
Nancy spent a good bit of time talking about the importance of our focus, or where we fixed our eyes. She encouraged us to approach Galatians 5:22 with our eyes fixed on Jesus rather than on ourselves. Scripture also encourages us to focus on the correct person: “. . . let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith” (Hebrews 12:1-2). Nancy noted that when it comes to the fruit of the Spirit, “the more your eyes are on yourself, the less fruit you will see.” Conversely, the more our eyes are fixed on Jesus, the more fruit we will experience.
The Fruit of God’s Spirit
Nancy also took time to show that this truth has its basis in scripture. 1 John 4:19 explains that there is a correlation between being loved by God and being able to love: “We love because He first loved us.” This verse of scripture places an emphasis on order: God loved us first, and THEN we were able to love. It underscores the truth that before we can evince the fruit of the Spirit in our hearts and lives, we must first receive it and enjoy it ourselves. Believing that God loves us is the first step to being able to love others. According to Nancy, this will not always be effortless. We have an enemy who works against our faith and lies to us constantly, maligning God. It is also a struggle to battle the unbelief and skepticism in our own hearts. Jesus himself said that believing in Him would be work (John 6:29). For this reason, in her message, Nancy cheered us on in the process of believing, saying, “You have to exercise yourself to believe that God loves you. ‘God loves me’ -- that is what you need to be thinking”
To further illustrate the role that the fruit of the Spirit plays in God’s actions toward us, Nancy read from Zephaniah: “The Lord your God is in your midst. . . He will exult over you with joy. He will be quiet in His love. He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy” (3:17). It is so exciting to think that I affect God in that way when He looks down on me. I make him dance and jump and shout for joy (and so do you)! What a great picture! That is definitely a scripture worth remembering and meditating on until it sinks in.
In addition to extending love and joy to us, God also wants us to have peace. Encouraging us to believe in God’s care for us, Nancy reminded everyone, “God is not mad at you; you are not at war with Him. God has peace for you. Seek it just as you would go into a grocery store and walk directly toward the produce section to buy fresh peaches.” Peace is a fruit of God’s Spirit, and it is available to us if we are willing to believe in Christ. In Romans, Paul states it so simply: “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (5:1). It is comforting to me to hear that God is not mad at me and that I am at peace with Him. No matter how many times I hear that, it always brings a cool sigh of relief.
In describing God’s patience toward us, Nancy explained that the King James Bible uses the word “longsuffering” for patience, which means “without agitation.” Over and over again in the Psalms, David speaks of the Lord as being “slow to anger.” On Sunday, Nancy reminded us that “God endures anything we send toward him.” He is not a time-bomb waiting to go off and destroy us. His love for us endures long and is patient. “Partake of that fruit,” Nancy said, “and be glad that he is patient with you.”
In her discussion of God’s kindness, Nancy made an interesting point. Reading Romans 2:4, which states that “the kindness of God leads you to repentance,” she reminded us of the way that God deals with us. When we are sinful and deserving of punishment, it is God’s kindness -- not his anger -- that makes us want to turn from our sin. He doesn’t change us with his anger, but with his kindness. “God doesn’t take a stick and beat you until you repent,” Nancy reminded us. He is kind. His kindness invites us to turn toward Him and away from our destructive behavior. His kindness has the power to change our lives. What an amazing fruit to look for when we fix our eyes on Christ!
When Nancy discussed the fruit of goodness, she pointed out that because God possesses goodness and is good, the effect that He has on our lives is beneficial. Being in a relationship with Him and following Him will result in good things for us. We just can’t avoid the goodness. “God is essentially, absolutely, and consummately good,” Nancy declared. In Romans 7:18, Paul dejectedly laments his inability to be good on his own: “For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the wishing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not.” Paul had intentions of doing good deeds; he knew what it was to be good; but he just couldn’t. Like Paul, we are essentially weak and are unable to be good on our own. However, we have the potential for goodness if we first receive it from God, from whom all goodness originates.
Another word for faithfulness, Nancy told us, is fidelity. Fidelity brings along with it connotations of solemnity and absolute trustworthiness. 2 Timothy 2:13 testifies to the immutable, unwavering nature of God’s faithfulness: “If we are faithless, He remains faithful; for He cannot deny Himself. God’s own nature makes him intrinsically faithful. His faithfulness does not depend on anything we do or don’t do. This is comforting to us since by nature, our faithfulness is weak and tenuous.
God’s gentleness is closely linked to humility. In Matthew 11:28-9, Jesus beckons us to come and sample the fruit of His gentleness. The result, He says, will be rest for our souls and relief from the pressure of pride: “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you shall find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy, and my load is light.”
Self control, Nancy explained, is defined as “the right use of power.” How is this exemplified in God? God never loses control of His power or misuses it. This should bring us comfort and make us feel secure in our relationship with Him. Even though He is omnipotent and even though His power could wipe us away instantaneously, He does not lose control of that power. We can trust Him. During His ministry, Jesus repeated over and over that He was here on earth to do His Father’s will and that He did not have an agenda of His own. He would only use His Father’s power according to His will: “I can do nothing on My own initiative . . . I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me,” (John 5:30).
Even when the Lord was provoked here on earth, He did not misuse His power. When Judas betrayed the Lord and led the authorities to arrest Him, Jesus restrained His power, saying to one of his overzealous disciples, “Put your sword back into its place; for all those who take up the sword shall perish by the sword. Or do you think that I cannot appeal to My Father, and He will at once put at My disposal more than twelve legions of angels?” Here, Jesus made the point that He had all power and authority, but that He would only use it according to God’s will. He is trustworthy, and we can depend that He will never deal with us in a reckless or thoughtless manner. “God’s not going to get mad with you and squish you like a bug,” Nancy chided us; “He NEVER misuses His power.”
Reflection
I have to say that even in writing this blog entry, I enjoyed thinking about some of God’s fruit. His characteristics are good, and just as we would delight in spending time with someone who has good qualities and extends them to us, how much more can we enjoy time spent with One who possesses those qualities ad infinitum? So don’t be discouraged when you read Galatians 5:22. Rather, take some time to turn your eyes upon the Jesus. He is gentle and patient and will wait with love while we adjust our focus from ourselves to Him.
Scriptures Referenced in Message
1 John 3:1a, 16a; 4:9-10, 16-18
Zephaniah 3:14-17
Luke 10:17-21; 15:4-7
John 14:27; 16:33; 20:19b
Romans 5:1; 15:13
Colossians 1:19-20
1 Timothy 1:16
2 Peter 3:9
Romans 2:4
Luke 18:18-19
Romans 7:18
2 Timothy 2:13
Romans 3:3
Matthew 11:28-30
John 5:30; 8:28; 12:49; 14:10
Matthew 26:51-53
June 21: Jesus, Man of Joy
How Do We Picture Jesus?
This Sunday, we had a once-in-a-while treat: a message delivered by Emil Powella. For his subject, Emil chose something close to his own heart: the part that joy played in Jesus’ personality and ministry. Emil started off by asking us if anyone possessed a photo of Jesus. Ann rummaged through her purse and found a copy of a painting, but of course, we were unable to produce an actual photo. Laughing, Emil said that for those of us who are visual learners and need a picture in order to really understand something, he had something helpful for us. Pointing to the screen behind him, he showed us a clip from The Book of Matthew, a Hollywood-made movie version of the Gospel of Matthew. In contrast to the stern, serious, or even angry cinematic portrayals of Jesus to which the world has become accustomed, this portrayal was refreshingly different: it depicted our Lord as a joyful man. With this film clip, Emil set up his thesis: Contrary to misconceptions illustrated in famous artwork and movies, Jesus did not spend his time on earth as a morose, aloof figure. Rather, He walked the earth radiating a bright, robust, and irresistible joy. Knowing this about Jesus, Emil implied, would drastically change the way we relate to our Lord. After all, a man’s demeanor has everything do with how we approach him.
Old Testament Predictions of Jesus’ Joy
When the Old Testament prophets foretold Jesus’ coming, their prophecies painted pictures of great joy. Isaiah speaks of “the ransomed of the Lord,” a title referring to anyone whom the Lord has saved (that includes us). These rescued and redeemed people will “come with joyful shouting . . . and everlasting joy will be on their heads. They will obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing will flee away” (51:11). How could Jesus bring such joy to us if He were not a man of joy? Isaiah continues his description of the Messiah’s coming in chapter 61, which states that this savior – Jesus – will give people “the oil of gladness instead of mourning”(verse 3). Here again, if Jesus is able to transform people’s mourning into gladness, doesn’t it seem logical that He Himself possesses gladness? And, if He is able to distribute gladness like oil to myriads of people, He must have a measureless supply of it.
The Old Testament book Nehemiah depicts Israel’s battle against fierce opposition to rebuild the temple. During this time, it was said that the people built with one hand and carried a sword in the other in order to battle the enemy that threatened to tear down what they were building. In the midst of this impossible struggle, the prophet Nehemiah encouraged Israel to remember their real source of strength: the joy of the Lord. “The joy of the Lord is your strength,” he reminded them (8:10). Emil pointed out that Jesus’ joy is not merely a flimsy, ephemeral happiness that goes away at the approach of difficulty. On the contrary, it is a substantial, ever-present power that upholds God’s people consistently, even during their most trying times.
Joy in Jesus’ Ministry
The New Testament also speaks of the enormous role that joy played in Jesus’ life and ministry. To help us to see this, Emil read accounts of Jesus’ ministry from the Gospels, encouraging us to think about Jesus’ countenance during his performance of miracles.
“Do you think He was a grumpy man?” Emil asked. “No! He was full of joy!”
Reading through these biblical accounts, Emil paused and emphasized details that we had not noticed before, bringing the well known stories into a new light. Chapter 2 of John describes Jesus’ first public miracle. This miracle was to be the advent and commencement of His public ministry and would set the tone for who Jesus was going to be as a public person. It is interesting that His first miracle wasn’t healing a sick person or raising the dead. Rather, it was an act that heaped more joy upon an already joyous occasion: a wedding. When the wedding host ran out of wine to serve the guests, Jesus transformed clear, tasteless water into exquisite wine. This miracle, Emil hypothesized, suggests that Jesus valued celebration. At the time, Jesus probably had a lot of work that He could have been doing, but He took the time to attend a wedding and to make the wedding even better. This passage also shows that Jesus enjoyed being around other people. After all, if he had been a smug, downtrodden, taciturn individual, he wouldn’t have been invited to the wedding in the first place. The fact that he was invited, as John 2:2 points out, shows that He was someone people wanted to be around. Emil also encouraged us to picture Jesus moments before the miracle took place. In the midst of the worried host and his skeptical disciples, Jesus just may have had a twinkle in his eye, knowing that he was about to turn their worry and skepticism into joy.
At another point during Jesus’ ministry, a foreign, non-Israeli woman came to Him and begged for mercy. Her daughter was possessed by demons and the woman was desperate for help. In response to her persistent cries for help, Jesus remained unusually silent. Finally, in an attempt to draw out her faith, Jesus turned to the woman and said that He could not help her because He had been sent only to Israel and she was a Gentile. “It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs,” Jesus stated (Matthew 15:26). Responding quickly and in desperation, she said, “Yes, Lord; but even the dogs feed on the crumbs which fall from their master’s table” (verse 27). The Bible teaches that faith pleases God and that God gives grace and favor to the humble. Jesus must have been pleased with this quick response in which the woman both acknowledged her own unworthiness and showed faith in His unmerited favor and compassion. Emil encouraged us to picture Jesus’ countenance when the woman spoke this humble, faith-filled reply. Of course, the account in Matthew does not tell us what Jesus’ expression was, but Emil suggested that it just may have been a look of joy.
“Can’t you see Jesus’ eyes lighting up and a smile peeking through his formerly solemn expression?” Emil asked. “Can’t you just see a grin on Jesus’ face that says, ‘you’ve got me there,’ when He hears the woman’s response?”
The Canaanite woman’s faith saw past Jesus’ initial comments to her, and reached down to the joy and magnanimity inside of Him. As a result, Jesus healed the woman’s daughter on the spot, telling the woman that her faith was “great.”
Jesus, Our Source of Joy
Emil ended his message by explaining that it is important to understand that Jesus was a man of joy because as his followers, joy is a big part of our identities too. If “the joy of the Lord is [our] strength,” then we need it for our own sustenance and endurance (Nehemiah 8:10). Moreover, there are other people that we encounter daily who are searching for Jesus. If we demonstrate the joy of the Lord, they may be drawn to Christ through that joy. This joy, Emil noted, is not something we will ever be able to produce on our own. It is a fruit of the Holy Spirit that is produced in us when we “abide in the vine,” which is Jesus. “You get fruit by spending time with Jesus,” Emil said. Based on Emil’s description of our joy-filled Savior, it is hard to imagine not wanting to spend time with Him.
Scriptures Referenced in Emil’s Message:
Isaiah 51:11
Isaiah 61:1-3
Nehemiah 8:10
Romans 14:17
John 2
Hebrews 12:2
Hebrews 1:9
Luke 10:21
Matthew 15:26-7
Psalm 150
Acts 2
Luke 15:10
James 1:2-4
Luke 15
Matthew 28:9
John 15
This Sunday, we had a once-in-a-while treat: a message delivered by Emil Powella. For his subject, Emil chose something close to his own heart: the part that joy played in Jesus’ personality and ministry. Emil started off by asking us if anyone possessed a photo of Jesus. Ann rummaged through her purse and found a copy of a painting, but of course, we were unable to produce an actual photo. Laughing, Emil said that for those of us who are visual learners and need a picture in order to really understand something, he had something helpful for us. Pointing to the screen behind him, he showed us a clip from The Book of Matthew, a Hollywood-made movie version of the Gospel of Matthew. In contrast to the stern, serious, or even angry cinematic portrayals of Jesus to which the world has become accustomed, this portrayal was refreshingly different: it depicted our Lord as a joyful man. With this film clip, Emil set up his thesis: Contrary to misconceptions illustrated in famous artwork and movies, Jesus did not spend his time on earth as a morose, aloof figure. Rather, He walked the earth radiating a bright, robust, and irresistible joy. Knowing this about Jesus, Emil implied, would drastically change the way we relate to our Lord. After all, a man’s demeanor has everything do with how we approach him.
Old Testament Predictions of Jesus’ Joy
When the Old Testament prophets foretold Jesus’ coming, their prophecies painted pictures of great joy. Isaiah speaks of “the ransomed of the Lord,” a title referring to anyone whom the Lord has saved (that includes us). These rescued and redeemed people will “come with joyful shouting . . . and everlasting joy will be on their heads. They will obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing will flee away” (51:11). How could Jesus bring such joy to us if He were not a man of joy? Isaiah continues his description of the Messiah’s coming in chapter 61, which states that this savior – Jesus – will give people “the oil of gladness instead of mourning”(verse 3). Here again, if Jesus is able to transform people’s mourning into gladness, doesn’t it seem logical that He Himself possesses gladness? And, if He is able to distribute gladness like oil to myriads of people, He must have a measureless supply of it.
The Old Testament book Nehemiah depicts Israel’s battle against fierce opposition to rebuild the temple. During this time, it was said that the people built with one hand and carried a sword in the other in order to battle the enemy that threatened to tear down what they were building. In the midst of this impossible struggle, the prophet Nehemiah encouraged Israel to remember their real source of strength: the joy of the Lord. “The joy of the Lord is your strength,” he reminded them (8:10). Emil pointed out that Jesus’ joy is not merely a flimsy, ephemeral happiness that goes away at the approach of difficulty. On the contrary, it is a substantial, ever-present power that upholds God’s people consistently, even during their most trying times.
Joy in Jesus’ Ministry
The New Testament also speaks of the enormous role that joy played in Jesus’ life and ministry. To help us to see this, Emil read accounts of Jesus’ ministry from the Gospels, encouraging us to think about Jesus’ countenance during his performance of miracles.
“Do you think He was a grumpy man?” Emil asked. “No! He was full of joy!”
Reading through these biblical accounts, Emil paused and emphasized details that we had not noticed before, bringing the well known stories into a new light. Chapter 2 of John describes Jesus’ first public miracle. This miracle was to be the advent and commencement of His public ministry and would set the tone for who Jesus was going to be as a public person. It is interesting that His first miracle wasn’t healing a sick person or raising the dead. Rather, it was an act that heaped more joy upon an already joyous occasion: a wedding. When the wedding host ran out of wine to serve the guests, Jesus transformed clear, tasteless water into exquisite wine. This miracle, Emil hypothesized, suggests that Jesus valued celebration. At the time, Jesus probably had a lot of work that He could have been doing, but He took the time to attend a wedding and to make the wedding even better. This passage also shows that Jesus enjoyed being around other people. After all, if he had been a smug, downtrodden, taciturn individual, he wouldn’t have been invited to the wedding in the first place. The fact that he was invited, as John 2:2 points out, shows that He was someone people wanted to be around. Emil also encouraged us to picture Jesus moments before the miracle took place. In the midst of the worried host and his skeptical disciples, Jesus just may have had a twinkle in his eye, knowing that he was about to turn their worry and skepticism into joy.
At another point during Jesus’ ministry, a foreign, non-Israeli woman came to Him and begged for mercy. Her daughter was possessed by demons and the woman was desperate for help. In response to her persistent cries for help, Jesus remained unusually silent. Finally, in an attempt to draw out her faith, Jesus turned to the woman and said that He could not help her because He had been sent only to Israel and she was a Gentile. “It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs,” Jesus stated (Matthew 15:26). Responding quickly and in desperation, she said, “Yes, Lord; but even the dogs feed on the crumbs which fall from their master’s table” (verse 27). The Bible teaches that faith pleases God and that God gives grace and favor to the humble. Jesus must have been pleased with this quick response in which the woman both acknowledged her own unworthiness and showed faith in His unmerited favor and compassion. Emil encouraged us to picture Jesus’ countenance when the woman spoke this humble, faith-filled reply. Of course, the account in Matthew does not tell us what Jesus’ expression was, but Emil suggested that it just may have been a look of joy.
“Can’t you see Jesus’ eyes lighting up and a smile peeking through his formerly solemn expression?” Emil asked. “Can’t you just see a grin on Jesus’ face that says, ‘you’ve got me there,’ when He hears the woman’s response?”
The Canaanite woman’s faith saw past Jesus’ initial comments to her, and reached down to the joy and magnanimity inside of Him. As a result, Jesus healed the woman’s daughter on the spot, telling the woman that her faith was “great.”
Jesus, Our Source of Joy
Emil ended his message by explaining that it is important to understand that Jesus was a man of joy because as his followers, joy is a big part of our identities too. If “the joy of the Lord is [our] strength,” then we need it for our own sustenance and endurance (Nehemiah 8:10). Moreover, there are other people that we encounter daily who are searching for Jesus. If we demonstrate the joy of the Lord, they may be drawn to Christ through that joy. This joy, Emil noted, is not something we will ever be able to produce on our own. It is a fruit of the Holy Spirit that is produced in us when we “abide in the vine,” which is Jesus. “You get fruit by spending time with Jesus,” Emil said. Based on Emil’s description of our joy-filled Savior, it is hard to imagine not wanting to spend time with Him.
Scriptures Referenced in Emil’s Message:
Isaiah 51:11
Isaiah 61:1-3
Nehemiah 8:10
Romans 14:17
John 2
Hebrews 12:2
Hebrews 1:9
Luke 10:21
Matthew 15:26-7
Psalm 150
Acts 2
Luke 15:10
James 1:2-4
Luke 15
Matthew 28:9
John 15
June 14: Surrender and Trust
Trust’s Relationship to Surrender
On Sunday, Nancy continued the lesson on surrender. This time, she focused on trust, a small, monosyllabic word capable of transforming a desert into an oasis. “You have to trust God in order to surrender to God,” Nancy stated simply. Trusting God is a decision – a decision to believe in God’s integrity and character according to His word. Nancy elaborated on trust for some time, defining it as a “state of non-anxiety” and describing its fruit as “rest, joy and peace.” She read from a passage in Jeremiah that painted a colorful picture of trust. Jeremiah 17:5-8 contrasts two men: the man who trusts in mankind and the man who trusts in the Lord. The man who trusts in mankind is represented by images of dryness, desiccation, and the “nothingness” that one might associate with a wasteland. In stark contrast, Jeremiah describes the man who trusts in God as “blessed.” This man is “a tree planted by the water,” full of lush green leaves and bountiful fruit. The roots of this tree, according to Jeremiah, reach out to the nearby water source, by which it is continually hydrated. While others might be afraid during a time of drought, this tree “will not be anxious.”
Hezekiah: A Picture of Trust
To continue her sermon on trust and its relationship to surrender, Nancy explained that whenever we begin to trust in the Lord, there will be opposition from our enemy, Satan. She read from the Old Testament story of Hezekiah’s water tunnel to illustrate this point. Hezekiah was a king of Judah who trusted in God. When Assyria’s Sennacherib threatened to besiege Jerusalem, Hezekiah told the Jerusalemites to trust in God because He would protect them. This trust was actively, aggressively, and cleverly opposed by Sennacherib, who taunted the people of Jerusalem, saying that they were foolish to trust in God and in Hezekiah. In those days, it was common for an invading army to cut off the water supply of the city it wanted to capture. This would force the captive city to either surrender to the enemy or face dehydration and death. Anticipating that Sennacherib would use this strategy, Hezekiah acted quickly and decisively to prevent him from cutting off Jerusalem’s water supply. He stopped up the spring from which Jerusalem derived its water and dug a tunnel that would divert the spring’s water from its above-ground flow pattern to an undetectable subterranean channel that emptied out within the city walls. When considering the tunnel today, it seems a miracle that Hezekiah and his men were able to create it at all. Without the use of explosives or sophisticated power tools, they dug through solid rock in a matter of months. Moreover, in digging the S-shaped tunnel, Hezekiah’s workers started on opposite ends and worked their way toward one another, meeting in the middle. I can’t help but think that there was something supernatural in the construction of that tunnel.
So in the end, not only did God rescue Jerusalem by sending an angel to kill the entire Assyrian army; He also made sure that Jerusalem was well watered. This draws a parallel to the passage in Jeremiah, doesn’t it? Hezekiah and Jerusalem trusted in the Lord, and as a result, they were like the tree planted by the water with no need to be fearful or anxious of oncoming disaster.
Dig, Dig, Dig!
Nancy ended her message by pointing out that “our hearts are the place of worship,” just like Jerusalem was the center of worship for Judah. “The enemy wants to cut off our water supply (in scripture, water represents God’s Word and the Holy Spirit). He does this by throwing threats and circumstances in our faces so that we will not believe in God’s promises.” In light of this, Nancy said, “let your faith dig a tunnel to the springs of life so that no matter what besieges you in this life, you put your trust in God and live a life of surrender. You will experience an amazing peace that surpasses understanding that will guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus.”
Eating the Fruit of Trust: A Reflection
The statement that impacted me the most on Sunday was “You can’t surrender unless you trust; when you trust, you will eat the fruit.” In recent months, I have been able to taste a little of the fruit of surrender, and it really is worth it. The more I taste of it, the more I wish I had trusted God from the beginning. I became a Christian seventeen years ago and gave Him my life then, but I didn’t believe in his goodness enough to really trust Him. I remained anxious and fearful that really, He didn’t have my best interests in mind and that if I surrendered my life to Him wholly and stopped trying to run my life on my own, my life would be empty and I would have nothing. I couldn’t see His goodness; I couldn’t see His plan for me; I couldn’t see anything but emptiness. To be honest, I didn’t really believe He had a plan for me, let alone one that I would like. So I held on to small portions of my life, thinking that if I didn’t, I would be left with absolutely nothing. Not too long ago, I was brought to an understanding that there really are just two options: surrendering everything or nothing at all. Standing in “No Man’s Land,” with one foot in and one foot out really isn’t surrender at all. It is compromise, and in Jesus’ eyes, it is useless. So I stepped out of the middle and put both feet on His side, not looking back. I am so glad I did.
In retrospect, I wish I had trusted Him from the beginning. Then I would have had the fruit of surrender, like the sweet knowledge of His love for me, the cool peace of not having to be in charge of things, and the patience that comes from getting glimpses from an eternal perspective every now and then. So I encourage you to surrender with trust. If I had surrendered with trust a long time ago, I would be full of fruit right now, rather than just tasting it for the first time.
Scriptures Referenced in Nancy's Message:
Jeremiah 17:5-8
Psalm 20
2 Chronicles 31:20 - 32:22
1 Corinthians 10:6
John 7:37b-39a
Philippians 4:7
On Sunday, Nancy continued the lesson on surrender. This time, she focused on trust, a small, monosyllabic word capable of transforming a desert into an oasis. “You have to trust God in order to surrender to God,” Nancy stated simply. Trusting God is a decision – a decision to believe in God’s integrity and character according to His word. Nancy elaborated on trust for some time, defining it as a “state of non-anxiety” and describing its fruit as “rest, joy and peace.” She read from a passage in Jeremiah that painted a colorful picture of trust. Jeremiah 17:5-8 contrasts two men: the man who trusts in mankind and the man who trusts in the Lord. The man who trusts in mankind is represented by images of dryness, desiccation, and the “nothingness” that one might associate with a wasteland. In stark contrast, Jeremiah describes the man who trusts in God as “blessed.” This man is “a tree planted by the water,” full of lush green leaves and bountiful fruit. The roots of this tree, according to Jeremiah, reach out to the nearby water source, by which it is continually hydrated. While others might be afraid during a time of drought, this tree “will not be anxious.”
Hezekiah: A Picture of Trust
To continue her sermon on trust and its relationship to surrender, Nancy explained that whenever we begin to trust in the Lord, there will be opposition from our enemy, Satan. She read from the Old Testament story of Hezekiah’s water tunnel to illustrate this point. Hezekiah was a king of Judah who trusted in God. When Assyria’s Sennacherib threatened to besiege Jerusalem, Hezekiah told the Jerusalemites to trust in God because He would protect them. This trust was actively, aggressively, and cleverly opposed by Sennacherib, who taunted the people of Jerusalem, saying that they were foolish to trust in God and in Hezekiah. In those days, it was common for an invading army to cut off the water supply of the city it wanted to capture. This would force the captive city to either surrender to the enemy or face dehydration and death. Anticipating that Sennacherib would use this strategy, Hezekiah acted quickly and decisively to prevent him from cutting off Jerusalem’s water supply. He stopped up the spring from which Jerusalem derived its water and dug a tunnel that would divert the spring’s water from its above-ground flow pattern to an undetectable subterranean channel that emptied out within the city walls. When considering the tunnel today, it seems a miracle that Hezekiah and his men were able to create it at all. Without the use of explosives or sophisticated power tools, they dug through solid rock in a matter of months. Moreover, in digging the S-shaped tunnel, Hezekiah’s workers started on opposite ends and worked their way toward one another, meeting in the middle. I can’t help but think that there was something supernatural in the construction of that tunnel.
So in the end, not only did God rescue Jerusalem by sending an angel to kill the entire Assyrian army; He also made sure that Jerusalem was well watered. This draws a parallel to the passage in Jeremiah, doesn’t it? Hezekiah and Jerusalem trusted in the Lord, and as a result, they were like the tree planted by the water with no need to be fearful or anxious of oncoming disaster.
Dig, Dig, Dig!
Nancy ended her message by pointing out that “our hearts are the place of worship,” just like Jerusalem was the center of worship for Judah. “The enemy wants to cut off our water supply (in scripture, water represents God’s Word and the Holy Spirit). He does this by throwing threats and circumstances in our faces so that we will not believe in God’s promises.” In light of this, Nancy said, “let your faith dig a tunnel to the springs of life so that no matter what besieges you in this life, you put your trust in God and live a life of surrender. You will experience an amazing peace that surpasses understanding that will guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus.”
Eating the Fruit of Trust: A Reflection
The statement that impacted me the most on Sunday was “You can’t surrender unless you trust; when you trust, you will eat the fruit.” In recent months, I have been able to taste a little of the fruit of surrender, and it really is worth it. The more I taste of it, the more I wish I had trusted God from the beginning. I became a Christian seventeen years ago and gave Him my life then, but I didn’t believe in his goodness enough to really trust Him. I remained anxious and fearful that really, He didn’t have my best interests in mind and that if I surrendered my life to Him wholly and stopped trying to run my life on my own, my life would be empty and I would have nothing. I couldn’t see His goodness; I couldn’t see His plan for me; I couldn’t see anything but emptiness. To be honest, I didn’t really believe He had a plan for me, let alone one that I would like. So I held on to small portions of my life, thinking that if I didn’t, I would be left with absolutely nothing. Not too long ago, I was brought to an understanding that there really are just two options: surrendering everything or nothing at all. Standing in “No Man’s Land,” with one foot in and one foot out really isn’t surrender at all. It is compromise, and in Jesus’ eyes, it is useless. So I stepped out of the middle and put both feet on His side, not looking back. I am so glad I did.
In retrospect, I wish I had trusted Him from the beginning. Then I would have had the fruit of surrender, like the sweet knowledge of His love for me, the cool peace of not having to be in charge of things, and the patience that comes from getting glimpses from an eternal perspective every now and then. So I encourage you to surrender with trust. If I had surrendered with trust a long time ago, I would be full of fruit right now, rather than just tasting it for the first time.
Scriptures Referenced in Nancy's Message:
Jeremiah 17:5-8
Psalm 20
2 Chronicles 31:20 - 32:22
1 Corinthians 10:6
John 7:37b-39a
Philippians 4:7
June 7: Practicing God’s Presence: “Gazing Heavenward”
Don’t Blink!
Last week, I spent some time visiting with Eileen and Kim at a neighborhood pool. Because both of them have young children, we lounged in the baby pool and talked rather than swimming and diving in the real pool. While Kim held Kaitlin and Eileen supervised Emilee’s splashing around, I asked Kim about this past year. That day was Kaitlin’s first birthday, and I knew it was a milestone for Kim, a time to remember an important day not too long ago when her life had changed so dramatically. Thinking it would seem like a long time ago to her, I said, “so much has happened since Kaitlin was born, it must seem like years ago rather than only a year.”
“Actually,” Kim said with wide eyes, it has gone by SO fast! I have never known time to go by so quickly.”
As we sat there and talked, pausing momentarily to laugh at Emilee’s antics, two older boys came and jumped into the baby pool. They were followed by their mother, a middle-aged woman who didn’t seem too pleased with them. “Get out of that pool,” she scolded with a New Jersey accent that somehow made the command seem absolutely nonnegotiable. “You are too old for that!” She smiled at us apologetically and looked at baby Kaitlin with a twinkle in her eye. She then said to Kim, “Don’t blink! You’ll open your eyes and she’ll be grown up! It goes by so fast.” With that, she shooed her sons out of the pool and the entire crew scampered away, leaving us to thoughtfully consider her words.
In the wake of that wise mother’s comments, my thoughts wandered to the Psalms. So many times throughout this collection of songs and poetry, the psalmists are forced to admit how fleeting and finite their lives are in light of the everlasting nature of God. They gaze upon God, and doing so makes them see themselves and their lives with a humbler perspective. In Psalm 144, David exclaims, “O Lord, what is man that Thou dost take knowledge of him? . . . Man is like a mere breath; his days are like a passing shadow” (verse 4). In Psalm 90, Moses contrasts God’s permanence with his own transience. He speaks of God as existing “before the mountains were born” and before God gave birth to the Earth (verse 2). Indeed, Moses notes, God has been God “from everlasting to everlasting” ( verse 2). Man, in contrast, turns back to dust after a brief lifespan of seventy or eighty years.* Even our years themselves, tiny units of measurement that we use to quantify this short life of ours, are miniscule to God. Moses remarks that “a thousand years in Your [God’s] sight are like yesterday when it passes by or as a watch in the night” (verse 4). To one with the infinite perspective of God, Moses theorizes, the span of our lives is like a moment that is over almost as quickly as one can blink an eye.
Numbering Our Days
In his sermon on Sunday, Rich drew from Moses’ Psalm 90 to point something out: because our lives are so short, it would behoove us to consider how to live them so that we don’t miss what is most important – God Himself. Moses, after considering the insignificance of man’s lifespan, prays earnestly, “So teach us to number our days, that we may present to Thee a heart of wisdom” (verse 12). Here, Moses is literally pleading with God to help him understand the brevity of his own life. Moses believes that if he continually remembers that his days are limited, he will gain wisdom. According to the book of Proverbs, wisdom is knowledge that is founded on an awareness of and fear of God. So when Moses asks God for a heart of wisdom, he is praying for a type of intelligence that first acknowledges God. Having this wisdom will inform Moses’ actions, and as a result, he will act as one who understands how valuable his time is and as one who seeks to use it a in way that pleases God.
Following this prayer for wisdom, Moses asks that God would not be far from him, but that His presence would be palpably evident at the beginning of each new day: “O satisfy us in the morning with Thy loving-kindness, that we may sing for joy and be glad all of our days” (verse 14). Here, Moses’ earnest request suggests that God’s favor and nearness are essential to his life’s satisfaction and contentment. After reading these verses to us in his sermon, Rich turned his attention from Moses to us.
Full Plates
In an effort to bring Moses’ ancient prayer to life and to relate it to our daily situations, Rich used a dinner plate. Rich said that if the world is a buffet table with an unlimited supply of food, our lives are like plates. We only have one plate to fill per day, and, as Moses states so categorically in Psalm 90, our days are finite. Each day, we tend to fill our plates high with plans, activities, and agendas. Sometimes, our plates are so heavily laden with “food” that we become overwhelmed. This leaves very little room, if any room at all, for God. Rich pointed out that if we want to live a surrendered life, we must bring our empty plates to God each morning and allow Him to fill them.
Taking the Time to Gaze at God
Rich explained to us that it is important that we give God our attention each day at some point. He said that he likes to get up early in the morning and pray and read scripture before his work day starts. Other people, however, may find that the early morning does not work well for them. Instead, they may find it easier to turn their attention to God at some other point in their day. The time and place of our meetings with God may vary, but what is most important is that we have the “meeting” at some point.
One of the most powerful moments in Rich’s sermon was when he asked us to close our eyes and gaze heavenward. As we sat there in self-imposed darkness, he asked us to look at God and listen to what our Heavenly Father would say to us. At the end of this exercise, Rich postulated that some people may have heard God express His love for them; some people may have heard God say that He wants to comfort them in the midst of the difficulty they are going through; and others may have heard that God is pleased with them. Still others, Rich suggested, were probably afraid to look at God. They were fearful of what they might hear. These people should take heart, because ultimately, our Heavenly Father loves us and doesn’t desire to punish us. The result of gazing at Him in faith can have effects that are both life-giving and life-sustaining.
Gazing at God: Life Sustaining
To the person who already believes in Jesus and has surrendered his life to Him, gazing at God becomes a vital part of nourishing and sustaining that relationship. In John 15, Jesus describes the relationship between Himself and believers as being like the relationship between a vine and its branches. Branches cannot live apart from the vine from which they grow. It is through that vine that they receive nutrients and hydration. The same principle holds true in the relationship between a believer and Christ. If a believer does not have a healthy, well nourished relationship with Christ, he will not flourish. For this reason, we must “gaze at God” often. We may gaze at God to praise him, or gaze at God to hear an “I love you” from Him or gaze at God to receive instruction and direction for a particular situation. Regardless, gazing at God is part of sustaining our relationship with Christ.
In chapter three of Acts, a passage which Rich read to us this week and last week, Peter and John encounter a crippled beggar whom God eventually heals through them. These two men could not have been a part of the beggar’s healing if they had not been taking the time to gaze at God. In fact, when they encountered the beggar, they were on the way to the temple to pray. They were particularly sensitive to God at that moment because they were going to the temple to look heavenward in prayer. Not only did Peter and John have an established relationship with Christ; they were also listening for his voice, taking the time to be aware of him. Because they were, they had an opportunity be used by God to change another man’s life.
Gazing at God: Life Saving
To the person who does not have a relationship with Christ, gazing at God becomes an act of life-saving significance. To illustrate this type of “gazing,” Rich referenced the story of Moses and the serpents. During the Israelites’ forty-year sojourn in the wilderness, there were several points at which the beloved people of God became irritable and complained about their situation. While this may seem like a mild offense, in reality, it was a sign of unbelief in God’s wisdom and goodness. In short, the Israelites’ complaints were positive proof that they did not believe that God was going to take care of them. At one point, when they had been wandering in the wilderness for some time, they became particularly angry at God and at Moses and began to grumble speak out against them. In response to this, God sent poisonous snakes out among them, which slithered around their feet, injecting deadly venom into their bodies with each outstretched fang. The people cried out to Moses for help, and at the Lord’s instruction, Moses made a serpent of brass and put it on top of a pole. Holding the pole up high in the air where it would be visible to all, Moses told the Israelites that if they would turn their gaze upward and fix their eyes on the brass serpent, they would be invulnerable to the snakes’ venom and they would live. Many people did this and were saved, but some people refused to look at the snake and perished.
Like the Israelites, we have been bitten by a serpent, figuratively. Because the craftiest serpent, Satan, tempted Eve so long ago, sin entered the world. As a result, we are born infected with sin’s “venom.” We have a natural tendency to sin, and regardless of how good we try to act, it is impossible for us to fully meet the standard of holiness that is set forth in God’s perfect law. The only life-saving antidote is Christ’s death on the cross. Just as God, through Moses, asked the Israelites to look up to the brass serpent, Christ asks us to look to the cross and believe that He died for us and will save us. But so many people think that such things are foolish, and they would rather perish than to believe that their sin could be wiped away so “easily.” Rich made the point that sometimes, pride can keep a person from believing in the life-saving power of Christ’s death on the cross. He hypothesized that if we had been in the wilderness with the Israelites, certain ones of us may have argued with Moses, saying that looking at the serpent was too easy a solution. Rather than believe that it could be real, many of us would have refused to accept it. The same thing happens with Christ. People don’t believe that their sins have been completely forgiven by Christ because that solution is just too simple to be realistic. Unfortunately, in their stubbornness, those people end up missing out on the opportunity of eternal life and a life-sustaining relationship with God himself. Jesus draws the comparison between Moses and Himself in John 3:14-15: “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; that whoever believes in Him will have eternal life.” As the bronze serpent saved the Israelites from the vipers’ venom, Jesus’ death on the cross saves us from Satan’s (the infernal serpent’s) venom – sin.
Gazing at God – Another Invitation
At the very end of Sunday’s church service, Heather Hviding led us in a song about God’s love. Strumming her guitar, she sang of a love higher and broader than human love could ever be. The song was another plea, just in case people didn’t hear the plea in Rich’s message, for us to take the time to gaze at God. When beholding God results in a love like the one described in this song, it is hard to imagine not being willing to take at least one look.
His love is higher than the highest of mountains.
His love goes deeper than the deepest of seas.
His love, it stretches to the farthest horizon,
And His love . . . it reaches to me.
His love is stronger than the angels and demons.
His love, it keeps me in my life's darkest hour.
His love secures me on the pathway to heaven,
And His love . . . is my strength and power.
His love is sweeter than the sweetest of honey.
His love is better than the choicest of wine.
His love, it satisfies the deepest of hunger,
And His love . . . in Jesus, it's mine.
Scriptures Referenced in Sermon
Psalm 90:12-14
Acts 3:1-20
Numbers 21:6-9
John 3:14
Other Scriptures to Consider
Psalm 144:4
John 15:1-11
*I think it is ironic and a little funny that Moses is quoted as saying that man’s lifespan is seventy or eighty years at most because Moses himself lived to be approximately one hundred and twenty! :)
Last week, I spent some time visiting with Eileen and Kim at a neighborhood pool. Because both of them have young children, we lounged in the baby pool and talked rather than swimming and diving in the real pool. While Kim held Kaitlin and Eileen supervised Emilee’s splashing around, I asked Kim about this past year. That day was Kaitlin’s first birthday, and I knew it was a milestone for Kim, a time to remember an important day not too long ago when her life had changed so dramatically. Thinking it would seem like a long time ago to her, I said, “so much has happened since Kaitlin was born, it must seem like years ago rather than only a year.”
“Actually,” Kim said with wide eyes, it has gone by SO fast! I have never known time to go by so quickly.”
As we sat there and talked, pausing momentarily to laugh at Emilee’s antics, two older boys came and jumped into the baby pool. They were followed by their mother, a middle-aged woman who didn’t seem too pleased with them. “Get out of that pool,” she scolded with a New Jersey accent that somehow made the command seem absolutely nonnegotiable. “You are too old for that!” She smiled at us apologetically and looked at baby Kaitlin with a twinkle in her eye. She then said to Kim, “Don’t blink! You’ll open your eyes and she’ll be grown up! It goes by so fast.” With that, she shooed her sons out of the pool and the entire crew scampered away, leaving us to thoughtfully consider her words.
In the wake of that wise mother’s comments, my thoughts wandered to the Psalms. So many times throughout this collection of songs and poetry, the psalmists are forced to admit how fleeting and finite their lives are in light of the everlasting nature of God. They gaze upon God, and doing so makes them see themselves and their lives with a humbler perspective. In Psalm 144, David exclaims, “O Lord, what is man that Thou dost take knowledge of him? . . . Man is like a mere breath; his days are like a passing shadow” (verse 4). In Psalm 90, Moses contrasts God’s permanence with his own transience. He speaks of God as existing “before the mountains were born” and before God gave birth to the Earth (verse 2). Indeed, Moses notes, God has been God “from everlasting to everlasting” ( verse 2). Man, in contrast, turns back to dust after a brief lifespan of seventy or eighty years.* Even our years themselves, tiny units of measurement that we use to quantify this short life of ours, are miniscule to God. Moses remarks that “a thousand years in Your [God’s] sight are like yesterday when it passes by or as a watch in the night” (verse 4). To one with the infinite perspective of God, Moses theorizes, the span of our lives is like a moment that is over almost as quickly as one can blink an eye.
Numbering Our Days
In his sermon on Sunday, Rich drew from Moses’ Psalm 90 to point something out: because our lives are so short, it would behoove us to consider how to live them so that we don’t miss what is most important – God Himself. Moses, after considering the insignificance of man’s lifespan, prays earnestly, “So teach us to number our days, that we may present to Thee a heart of wisdom” (verse 12). Here, Moses is literally pleading with God to help him understand the brevity of his own life. Moses believes that if he continually remembers that his days are limited, he will gain wisdom. According to the book of Proverbs, wisdom is knowledge that is founded on an awareness of and fear of God. So when Moses asks God for a heart of wisdom, he is praying for a type of intelligence that first acknowledges God. Having this wisdom will inform Moses’ actions, and as a result, he will act as one who understands how valuable his time is and as one who seeks to use it a in way that pleases God.
Following this prayer for wisdom, Moses asks that God would not be far from him, but that His presence would be palpably evident at the beginning of each new day: “O satisfy us in the morning with Thy loving-kindness, that we may sing for joy and be glad all of our days” (verse 14). Here, Moses’ earnest request suggests that God’s favor and nearness are essential to his life’s satisfaction and contentment. After reading these verses to us in his sermon, Rich turned his attention from Moses to us.
Full Plates
In an effort to bring Moses’ ancient prayer to life and to relate it to our daily situations, Rich used a dinner plate. Rich said that if the world is a buffet table with an unlimited supply of food, our lives are like plates. We only have one plate to fill per day, and, as Moses states so categorically in Psalm 90, our days are finite. Each day, we tend to fill our plates high with plans, activities, and agendas. Sometimes, our plates are so heavily laden with “food” that we become overwhelmed. This leaves very little room, if any room at all, for God. Rich pointed out that if we want to live a surrendered life, we must bring our empty plates to God each morning and allow Him to fill them.
Taking the Time to Gaze at God
Rich explained to us that it is important that we give God our attention each day at some point. He said that he likes to get up early in the morning and pray and read scripture before his work day starts. Other people, however, may find that the early morning does not work well for them. Instead, they may find it easier to turn their attention to God at some other point in their day. The time and place of our meetings with God may vary, but what is most important is that we have the “meeting” at some point.
One of the most powerful moments in Rich’s sermon was when he asked us to close our eyes and gaze heavenward. As we sat there in self-imposed darkness, he asked us to look at God and listen to what our Heavenly Father would say to us. At the end of this exercise, Rich postulated that some people may have heard God express His love for them; some people may have heard God say that He wants to comfort them in the midst of the difficulty they are going through; and others may have heard that God is pleased with them. Still others, Rich suggested, were probably afraid to look at God. They were fearful of what they might hear. These people should take heart, because ultimately, our Heavenly Father loves us and doesn’t desire to punish us. The result of gazing at Him in faith can have effects that are both life-giving and life-sustaining.
Gazing at God: Life Sustaining
To the person who already believes in Jesus and has surrendered his life to Him, gazing at God becomes a vital part of nourishing and sustaining that relationship. In John 15, Jesus describes the relationship between Himself and believers as being like the relationship between a vine and its branches. Branches cannot live apart from the vine from which they grow. It is through that vine that they receive nutrients and hydration. The same principle holds true in the relationship between a believer and Christ. If a believer does not have a healthy, well nourished relationship with Christ, he will not flourish. For this reason, we must “gaze at God” often. We may gaze at God to praise him, or gaze at God to hear an “I love you” from Him or gaze at God to receive instruction and direction for a particular situation. Regardless, gazing at God is part of sustaining our relationship with Christ.
In chapter three of Acts, a passage which Rich read to us this week and last week, Peter and John encounter a crippled beggar whom God eventually heals through them. These two men could not have been a part of the beggar’s healing if they had not been taking the time to gaze at God. In fact, when they encountered the beggar, they were on the way to the temple to pray. They were particularly sensitive to God at that moment because they were going to the temple to look heavenward in prayer. Not only did Peter and John have an established relationship with Christ; they were also listening for his voice, taking the time to be aware of him. Because they were, they had an opportunity be used by God to change another man’s life.
Gazing at God: Life Saving
To the person who does not have a relationship with Christ, gazing at God becomes an act of life-saving significance. To illustrate this type of “gazing,” Rich referenced the story of Moses and the serpents. During the Israelites’ forty-year sojourn in the wilderness, there were several points at which the beloved people of God became irritable and complained about their situation. While this may seem like a mild offense, in reality, it was a sign of unbelief in God’s wisdom and goodness. In short, the Israelites’ complaints were positive proof that they did not believe that God was going to take care of them. At one point, when they had been wandering in the wilderness for some time, they became particularly angry at God and at Moses and began to grumble speak out against them. In response to this, God sent poisonous snakes out among them, which slithered around their feet, injecting deadly venom into their bodies with each outstretched fang. The people cried out to Moses for help, and at the Lord’s instruction, Moses made a serpent of brass and put it on top of a pole. Holding the pole up high in the air where it would be visible to all, Moses told the Israelites that if they would turn their gaze upward and fix their eyes on the brass serpent, they would be invulnerable to the snakes’ venom and they would live. Many people did this and were saved, but some people refused to look at the snake and perished.
Like the Israelites, we have been bitten by a serpent, figuratively. Because the craftiest serpent, Satan, tempted Eve so long ago, sin entered the world. As a result, we are born infected with sin’s “venom.” We have a natural tendency to sin, and regardless of how good we try to act, it is impossible for us to fully meet the standard of holiness that is set forth in God’s perfect law. The only life-saving antidote is Christ’s death on the cross. Just as God, through Moses, asked the Israelites to look up to the brass serpent, Christ asks us to look to the cross and believe that He died for us and will save us. But so many people think that such things are foolish, and they would rather perish than to believe that their sin could be wiped away so “easily.” Rich made the point that sometimes, pride can keep a person from believing in the life-saving power of Christ’s death on the cross. He hypothesized that if we had been in the wilderness with the Israelites, certain ones of us may have argued with Moses, saying that looking at the serpent was too easy a solution. Rather than believe that it could be real, many of us would have refused to accept it. The same thing happens with Christ. People don’t believe that their sins have been completely forgiven by Christ because that solution is just too simple to be realistic. Unfortunately, in their stubbornness, those people end up missing out on the opportunity of eternal life and a life-sustaining relationship with God himself. Jesus draws the comparison between Moses and Himself in John 3:14-15: “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; that whoever believes in Him will have eternal life.” As the bronze serpent saved the Israelites from the vipers’ venom, Jesus’ death on the cross saves us from Satan’s (the infernal serpent’s) venom – sin.
Gazing at God – Another Invitation
At the very end of Sunday’s church service, Heather Hviding led us in a song about God’s love. Strumming her guitar, she sang of a love higher and broader than human love could ever be. The song was another plea, just in case people didn’t hear the plea in Rich’s message, for us to take the time to gaze at God. When beholding God results in a love like the one described in this song, it is hard to imagine not being willing to take at least one look.
His love is higher than the highest of mountains.
His love goes deeper than the deepest of seas.
His love, it stretches to the farthest horizon,
And His love . . . it reaches to me.
His love is stronger than the angels and demons.
His love, it keeps me in my life's darkest hour.
His love secures me on the pathway to heaven,
And His love . . . is my strength and power.
His love is sweeter than the sweetest of honey.
His love is better than the choicest of wine.
His love, it satisfies the deepest of hunger,
And His love . . . in Jesus, it's mine.
Scriptures Referenced in Sermon
Psalm 90:12-14
Acts 3:1-20
Numbers 21:6-9
John 3:14
Other Scriptures to Consider
Psalm 144:4
John 15:1-11
*I think it is ironic and a little funny that Moses is quoted as saying that man’s lifespan is seventy or eighty years at most because Moses himself lived to be approximately one hundred and twenty! :)
May 31: Practicing God's Presence (The Overflowing Life)
How did you do that?
Rich began this week’s message by sharing a personal story with us. While at Trail Days earlier in the month, a magazine reporter interviewed him about his part in the Appalachian Trail ministry. As the interview wore on, the reporter’s questions gradually changed from scripted interview prompts to genuine, heartfelt inquiries. Finally, the reporter said to Rich, “This week, I noticed you having conversations with just about every hiker that came your way. You were talking about Christ, weren’t you? How did you do that?”
How do we minister to others powerfully? How do we find a way to share with others the truths and the love that we ourselves have found in Christ? This is the question that the interviewer was asking. He probably expected Rich to explain a conversation method or a five-step process for engaging listeners. Maybe he thought Rich would teach him a rhetorical technique or persuasive stratagem. Whatever the interviewer was expecting, the answer Rich had for him was quite simple. On Sunday, Rich based his message on that very simple answer.
The Overflowing Life
In last week’s sermon, Nancy pointed out that God calls all believers not only to believe in Christ, but also to surrender their lives to Him. What she didn’t necessarily emphasize is that this type of surrender has life altering consequences – good ones. The natural result of surrender, according to scripture, is what Rich described this week as an “overflowing life,” a life that is full of the Holy Spirit and its fruit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness and discipline (Galatians 5:22). Herein lies the answer to the reporter’s question: when a person has surrendered his life to God, the change that takes place leaves him brimming with excitement and gratitude for what God has done for him. Therefore, it is no difficult chore for him to share all of that with others. It is not a tedious or awkward responsibility; it comes naturally. Divulging the truth about Christ’s love came naturally to Rich because he was so full the Holy Spirit that he was overflowing with it, just as a glass of water that has reached its full capacity overflows when more water is added.
“I am what I am, but I am not yet who I will become”
The idea of an overflowing heart has its basis in scripture. Christ pointed out in the Gospels that whether with goodness or with evil, each person’s heart overflows with something: “The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart” (Luke 6:45). Before Christ rescues us from our sin, our lives are not “overflowing” with goodness and truth. Rather, they are often overflowing with hurt, fear, anger, or any number of unfavorable things. Rich stated in his sermon that thankfully, amidst all of the toxic trash that inhabits our minds and souls, Christ comes in and loves us anyway. He loves us so consistently and unconditionally that eventually, we start letting go of some of our sin. When we get rid of some of that trash, it gives Christ a chance to come in and inhabit more space in our hearts. The more surrendered we become and the more old attitudes, destructive behaviors, and lies we let go of, the more God is able to fill us with His Spirit, and over time, He is able to make us into that person that He had in mind when He carefully designed us. Rich made a point to say that when God looks at our unregenerate, filthy state as sinners, He sees us as we are, but He also sees us as the new creations we will become. He knows our potential because He gave it to us when He made us, and He loves us. He loves us with a love as intense as a fire that cannot be extinguished, and He believes in us and in our potential even when we do not believe in either. He rescues us from our sin, takes us as we are, and begins the long, slow, yet careful and loving process of making us into who we will become.
Peter and John: Failures with Potential in Christ
In his sermon, Rich mentioned that he loves reading about successful people who were once failures because it gives him hope for himself. Two such examples of this are Peter and John, two of Jesus’ disciples who, when Jesus found them, had enough flaws to discourage anyone from believing in them. John had a violent nature, and Peter tended to vacillate between overweening pride and shameful cowardice. Would you believe that John, who was latterly termed the “Son of Thunder,” went on to be called the Apostle of Love and that Peter, weak and prideful as he was, went on to demonstrate great humility and courage? These two men were changed by the love and power of Christ. The Lord saw their potential long before it was evident to anyone else because He had created them with it. And through various trials and surrenders, they became the men that we see in Acts 3:1-20.
Peter and John: Prime Examples of the Overflowing Life
By the time of the encounter described in Acts 3:1-20, Peter and John had witnessed Christ’s death, resurrection, and ascension and had received his Holy Spirit on Pentecost. Through God’s providential work in their lives and through their own willingness to surrender everything to Christ, they had been changed. What Peter and John demonstrate in this passage is a prime example of ministering not according to a formula or strategy, but out of a life overflowing with God’s Holy Spirit. In his sermon, Rich used Peter and John’s example to point out several principles of “the overflowing life.”
Principles of an Overflowing Life
- Routine Situations Become Sacred Opportunities
First of all, the sacred encounter that Peter and John had with the beggar in Acts 3 was not something they had planned in advance. On that particular day, the two friends were merely going to the temple to pray at the usual time – a routine they probably followed daily. Approaching the temple, they encountered a lame man, whom the narrator tells us was a regular beggar at the temple, known by most. So Peter and John’s situation was nothing unique: they were going to a place they visited regularly and encountered a man they had likely seen before.
What made this ordinary moment special was the Holy Spirit. Because Peter and John were surrendered to God and the Holy Spirit indwelt them, they were open to hearing the Lord’s voice. The Scripture explains that in the moment when the lame man asked for alms, the Holy Spirit seized Peter’s and John’s attention and caused them to “fix their gaze” upon the man (3:4). Rich noted in his sermon that in this situation, the Holy Spirit caused Peter and John to see the beggar as Christ saw him rather than as just another face in the crowd. We are not privy to what went on in Peter’s mind during this occurrence. The narrator only tells us that the beggar had caught his attention. I am guessing, however, that there may have been a quick prayer exchanged silently between Peter and the Lord in which the apostle asked what to do, and the Lord impressed upon him that he was to give the beggar what he had. Whatever his thoughts were at the time, Peter’s response to the beggar’s request for alms was this: “I do not possess silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you: In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene -- Walk!” With the word “walk,” the crippled man got up and was healed, his life having been forever changed because he crossed paths with Peter and John and the power of God “overflowed” onto him.
- God Wants to Do More Than We Ask or Expect
What an amazing gift – to be whole again and to be able to walk and function as a regular person. We can only speculate as to how this changed the beggar’s life. One thing is certain, however. We can learn a biblical principle from the beggar’s story: God’s ways are not just different from our ways; they are BETTER. The beggar’s highest aim was to receive money from Peter and John. God’s desire was to give the beggar more than that – He wanted the beggar to be whole again and able to walk. Through Peter and John, God does more for the beggar than the beggar would have thought possible. In Ephesians, Paul echoes this principle when he describes Christ as “Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think” (3:20)
Uncovering Hidden Treasures
Rich ended his message with an object lesson. He showed us an old duffle bag filled with miscellaneous items and said that the bag represented his life. Reaching down into the canvas tote, he pulled out several belongings, one at a time – a tennis ball, a picture of himself with a huge trophy fish, a book, his wallet, a pocket calendar, and a picture of his family. Each one of these belongings, he noted, represented a different aspect of his life that was very dear to him. He also stated that at some point or another, God had brought him to the point of having to surrender each of those things to Him.
As Rich presented each item, he lingered for a little while, telling us about an experience involving each prized possession. When he got to the book, however, he explained to us that early in his life, books, especially textbooks, had been not a treasure to him but an odious symbol of failure. He briefly referenced his tortuous memories of being in high school and not knowing how to study. At the time, he thought so little of his own abilities as a student that he didn’t even attempt any kind of scholarly pursuits. Then, through a series of circumstances, he was brought to a point where he had to surrender even his failures to the Lord. He saw himself as a failure academically, but God was compelling him to go to college, and in order to succeed in college, Rich had to do something he thought would make him miserable: study. But he surrendered even that to God, and over time, God not only caused him to be a successful student; He also showed Rich that really, he had created him with a love for learning and reading. Today, many of us know Rich as someone who is well versed in the Bible and in many areas of theology. There are even times when his passion for reading and studying “overflows” onto the rest of us as he hands out books and study tools to us to help us get more out of God’s Word. This hidden treasure of scholarship was one that Rich would have never discovered had he not been willing to surrender his life to Christ. So it seems that when we surrender to the Lord’s work in our lives, we sometimes find hidden treasure that we do not expect. And many times, we find that God has created us with hidden potential that exceeds what we would have ever imagined ourselves as being able to do.
Are You Ready Yet?
After Rich’s sermon, the service ended with a song called “More Precious than Silver.” This piece of music is a love song to Christ, expressing his surpassing superiority to anything else on this earth, even the most desirable things that we can imagine. The song mentions gold, silver, and diamonds, claiming that the Lord is still more precious, more valuable and more costly than these, the most prized treasures in the world. We all sang this song, yet I wonder if we are ready to believe it. If God is truly more valuable than even the most valuable of worldly treasures, shouldn’t we feel safe in surrendering our own treasures to him? Rich ended his message by asking us whether we were ready to surrender all that we had to God. He held up his bag to show us the things that he had to surrender. Then he said: “There are three things that God wants: your fears, your failures, and your future. Are you ready to trust that if you give those things over to God, He will take care of you?”
Scriptures Referenced in the Sermon
Luke 6:43-45; Acts 3:1-20
Other Scriptures to Consider
Ephesians 3:20
Colossians 2:2-3
Rich began this week’s message by sharing a personal story with us. While at Trail Days earlier in the month, a magazine reporter interviewed him about his part in the Appalachian Trail ministry. As the interview wore on, the reporter’s questions gradually changed from scripted interview prompts to genuine, heartfelt inquiries. Finally, the reporter said to Rich, “This week, I noticed you having conversations with just about every hiker that came your way. You were talking about Christ, weren’t you? How did you do that?”
How do we minister to others powerfully? How do we find a way to share with others the truths and the love that we ourselves have found in Christ? This is the question that the interviewer was asking. He probably expected Rich to explain a conversation method or a five-step process for engaging listeners. Maybe he thought Rich would teach him a rhetorical technique or persuasive stratagem. Whatever the interviewer was expecting, the answer Rich had for him was quite simple. On Sunday, Rich based his message on that very simple answer.
The Overflowing Life
In last week’s sermon, Nancy pointed out that God calls all believers not only to believe in Christ, but also to surrender their lives to Him. What she didn’t necessarily emphasize is that this type of surrender has life altering consequences – good ones. The natural result of surrender, according to scripture, is what Rich described this week as an “overflowing life,” a life that is full of the Holy Spirit and its fruit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness and discipline (Galatians 5:22). Herein lies the answer to the reporter’s question: when a person has surrendered his life to God, the change that takes place leaves him brimming with excitement and gratitude for what God has done for him. Therefore, it is no difficult chore for him to share all of that with others. It is not a tedious or awkward responsibility; it comes naturally. Divulging the truth about Christ’s love came naturally to Rich because he was so full the Holy Spirit that he was overflowing with it, just as a glass of water that has reached its full capacity overflows when more water is added.
“I am what I am, but I am not yet who I will become”
The idea of an overflowing heart has its basis in scripture. Christ pointed out in the Gospels that whether with goodness or with evil, each person’s heart overflows with something: “The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart” (Luke 6:45). Before Christ rescues us from our sin, our lives are not “overflowing” with goodness and truth. Rather, they are often overflowing with hurt, fear, anger, or any number of unfavorable things. Rich stated in his sermon that thankfully, amidst all of the toxic trash that inhabits our minds and souls, Christ comes in and loves us anyway. He loves us so consistently and unconditionally that eventually, we start letting go of some of our sin. When we get rid of some of that trash, it gives Christ a chance to come in and inhabit more space in our hearts. The more surrendered we become and the more old attitudes, destructive behaviors, and lies we let go of, the more God is able to fill us with His Spirit, and over time, He is able to make us into that person that He had in mind when He carefully designed us. Rich made a point to say that when God looks at our unregenerate, filthy state as sinners, He sees us as we are, but He also sees us as the new creations we will become. He knows our potential because He gave it to us when He made us, and He loves us. He loves us with a love as intense as a fire that cannot be extinguished, and He believes in us and in our potential even when we do not believe in either. He rescues us from our sin, takes us as we are, and begins the long, slow, yet careful and loving process of making us into who we will become.
Peter and John: Failures with Potential in Christ
In his sermon, Rich mentioned that he loves reading about successful people who were once failures because it gives him hope for himself. Two such examples of this are Peter and John, two of Jesus’ disciples who, when Jesus found them, had enough flaws to discourage anyone from believing in them. John had a violent nature, and Peter tended to vacillate between overweening pride and shameful cowardice. Would you believe that John, who was latterly termed the “Son of Thunder,” went on to be called the Apostle of Love and that Peter, weak and prideful as he was, went on to demonstrate great humility and courage? These two men were changed by the love and power of Christ. The Lord saw their potential long before it was evident to anyone else because He had created them with it. And through various trials and surrenders, they became the men that we see in Acts 3:1-20.
Peter and John: Prime Examples of the Overflowing Life
By the time of the encounter described in Acts 3:1-20, Peter and John had witnessed Christ’s death, resurrection, and ascension and had received his Holy Spirit on Pentecost. Through God’s providential work in their lives and through their own willingness to surrender everything to Christ, they had been changed. What Peter and John demonstrate in this passage is a prime example of ministering not according to a formula or strategy, but out of a life overflowing with God’s Holy Spirit. In his sermon, Rich used Peter and John’s example to point out several principles of “the overflowing life.”
Principles of an Overflowing Life
- Routine Situations Become Sacred Opportunities
First of all, the sacred encounter that Peter and John had with the beggar in Acts 3 was not something they had planned in advance. On that particular day, the two friends were merely going to the temple to pray at the usual time – a routine they probably followed daily. Approaching the temple, they encountered a lame man, whom the narrator tells us was a regular beggar at the temple, known by most. So Peter and John’s situation was nothing unique: they were going to a place they visited regularly and encountered a man they had likely seen before.
What made this ordinary moment special was the Holy Spirit. Because Peter and John were surrendered to God and the Holy Spirit indwelt them, they were open to hearing the Lord’s voice. The Scripture explains that in the moment when the lame man asked for alms, the Holy Spirit seized Peter’s and John’s attention and caused them to “fix their gaze” upon the man (3:4). Rich noted in his sermon that in this situation, the Holy Spirit caused Peter and John to see the beggar as Christ saw him rather than as just another face in the crowd. We are not privy to what went on in Peter’s mind during this occurrence. The narrator only tells us that the beggar had caught his attention. I am guessing, however, that there may have been a quick prayer exchanged silently between Peter and the Lord in which the apostle asked what to do, and the Lord impressed upon him that he was to give the beggar what he had. Whatever his thoughts were at the time, Peter’s response to the beggar’s request for alms was this: “I do not possess silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you: In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene -- Walk!” With the word “walk,” the crippled man got up and was healed, his life having been forever changed because he crossed paths with Peter and John and the power of God “overflowed” onto him.
- God Wants to Do More Than We Ask or Expect
What an amazing gift – to be whole again and to be able to walk and function as a regular person. We can only speculate as to how this changed the beggar’s life. One thing is certain, however. We can learn a biblical principle from the beggar’s story: God’s ways are not just different from our ways; they are BETTER. The beggar’s highest aim was to receive money from Peter and John. God’s desire was to give the beggar more than that – He wanted the beggar to be whole again and able to walk. Through Peter and John, God does more for the beggar than the beggar would have thought possible. In Ephesians, Paul echoes this principle when he describes Christ as “Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think” (3:20)
Uncovering Hidden Treasures
Rich ended his message with an object lesson. He showed us an old duffle bag filled with miscellaneous items and said that the bag represented his life. Reaching down into the canvas tote, he pulled out several belongings, one at a time – a tennis ball, a picture of himself with a huge trophy fish, a book, his wallet, a pocket calendar, and a picture of his family. Each one of these belongings, he noted, represented a different aspect of his life that was very dear to him. He also stated that at some point or another, God had brought him to the point of having to surrender each of those things to Him.
As Rich presented each item, he lingered for a little while, telling us about an experience involving each prized possession. When he got to the book, however, he explained to us that early in his life, books, especially textbooks, had been not a treasure to him but an odious symbol of failure. He briefly referenced his tortuous memories of being in high school and not knowing how to study. At the time, he thought so little of his own abilities as a student that he didn’t even attempt any kind of scholarly pursuits. Then, through a series of circumstances, he was brought to a point where he had to surrender even his failures to the Lord. He saw himself as a failure academically, but God was compelling him to go to college, and in order to succeed in college, Rich had to do something he thought would make him miserable: study. But he surrendered even that to God, and over time, God not only caused him to be a successful student; He also showed Rich that really, he had created him with a love for learning and reading. Today, many of us know Rich as someone who is well versed in the Bible and in many areas of theology. There are even times when his passion for reading and studying “overflows” onto the rest of us as he hands out books and study tools to us to help us get more out of God’s Word. This hidden treasure of scholarship was one that Rich would have never discovered had he not been willing to surrender his life to Christ. So it seems that when we surrender to the Lord’s work in our lives, we sometimes find hidden treasure that we do not expect. And many times, we find that God has created us with hidden potential that exceeds what we would have ever imagined ourselves as being able to do.
Are You Ready Yet?
After Rich’s sermon, the service ended with a song called “More Precious than Silver.” This piece of music is a love song to Christ, expressing his surpassing superiority to anything else on this earth, even the most desirable things that we can imagine. The song mentions gold, silver, and diamonds, claiming that the Lord is still more precious, more valuable and more costly than these, the most prized treasures in the world. We all sang this song, yet I wonder if we are ready to believe it. If God is truly more valuable than even the most valuable of worldly treasures, shouldn’t we feel safe in surrendering our own treasures to him? Rich ended his message by asking us whether we were ready to surrender all that we had to God. He held up his bag to show us the things that he had to surrender. Then he said: “There are three things that God wants: your fears, your failures, and your future. Are you ready to trust that if you give those things over to God, He will take care of you?”
Scriptures Referenced in the Sermon
Luke 6:43-45; Acts 3:1-20
Other Scriptures to Consider
Ephesians 3:20
Colossians 2:2-3
May 24, 2009: “Surrender”
Craig’s Surrender
This Sunday, Nancy asked us to consider whether or not we have surrendered ourselves to God. She reminded us of Craig’s testimony last week, pointing out that God wasn’t able to change Craig’s life for the better until Craig finally surrendered to Him with his whole heart. Craig’s testimony clearly showed us that there is a difference between accepting Christ as a savior and living a life surrendered to Christ. When we surrender is when the power of God truly changes us and we reach our full potential.
Why Don’t We Surrender?
What makes surrender hard for us, Nancy noted, is that we don’t trust God. We don’t understand his ways, and even worse, we often make false assumptions about how God feels about us and what He intends for us. When it comes down to it, many of us have a hard time believing that God has good intentions toward us. For example, we are sometimes tempted to think that God is out to get us and that He desires to make us suffer in order to punish us. On the contrary, God loves us and has good plans for us. He uses suffering in our lives only as an instrument with which to form his character in us and to cause us to grow to maturity. If we are surrendered to God, He will allow suffering because He loves us and wants us to grow; not because He wants to torture us. The principle that suffering for God’s will leads to growth and good character is set forth throughout scripture in verses such as 1 Peter 4:12 and James 1:2-4. In fact, we are encouraged to rejoice inasmuch as we are a part of the sufferings of Christ because we can identify with Christ in this way.
Abigail and David – Surrender and Character (1 Samuel 25)
To illustrate the point that God often allows suffering in order to accomplish good for us and for His kingdom, Nancy used the story of Abigail and David. Both characters were made to suffer for a time, but it was for God’s purpose, and in the end, they were rewarded for their suffering. Nancy sketched a bit of David’s background for us, explaining that it was twenty-two years between the time that he was told he would be king of Israel and the time when he actually became king. David suffered intensely during those twenty-two years because King Saul, who had been his good friend at one time, became murderously jealous of him and made several attempts on his life. Through this suffering, which was spent in caves and in other unwelcome places, David grew to be a man who had God’s proven character, a trait which served him well when he finally became a king.
Similar to David, Abigail also suffered intensely. She was married to a man who (it seems) did not have even the slightest redeeming quality. The Bible describes him as a fool, and based on the scenario outlined in chapter 25, it would not be inaccurate to compare him to a tyrant. Abigail was trapped in a marriage to a selfish, foolish man, a marriage which was most likely arranged for her. However, at the point that she meets David, she evinces godly characteristics. One could infer that this godly character was forged in her through the things she had to suffer in surrendering her will and life to the Lord. In the end, God delivers Abigail through Nabal’s sudden death and rewards her and provides for her through her subsequent marriage to David.
A Choice to be Made
Nancy ended her message by compelling us to consider our own situations. Have we truly surrendered our lives to the Lord? Yes, we are all in church, and many of us have taken the initial step of trusting Christ for our salvation, but as was the case with Craig, it is possible to be in church without really turning one’s life over to God to see what he will do with it. Nancy brought up a lot of the popular arguments against surrender – fear of what might happen, fear of what we might lose, and fear that God will make us suffer more than we are able to handle. But then she made this point: “You are going to suffer in this life. Suffering is inevitable because we live in a fallen world, full of sin and pain. Wouldn’t you rather suffer for doing the will of God and be rewarded for it rather than to suffer for nothing and in the end to be judged?” These last few words brought us face to face with a question that, at some point or another, begs an answer.
Scriptures Referenced in Nancy’s Sermon
I Samuel 25; 1 Peter 4:12; James 1:2-4; John 3:17; Jeremiah 29:11
Other Scriptures to Consider
Matthew 10:28-30
This Sunday, Nancy asked us to consider whether or not we have surrendered ourselves to God. She reminded us of Craig’s testimony last week, pointing out that God wasn’t able to change Craig’s life for the better until Craig finally surrendered to Him with his whole heart. Craig’s testimony clearly showed us that there is a difference between accepting Christ as a savior and living a life surrendered to Christ. When we surrender is when the power of God truly changes us and we reach our full potential.
Why Don’t We Surrender?
What makes surrender hard for us, Nancy noted, is that we don’t trust God. We don’t understand his ways, and even worse, we often make false assumptions about how God feels about us and what He intends for us. When it comes down to it, many of us have a hard time believing that God has good intentions toward us. For example, we are sometimes tempted to think that God is out to get us and that He desires to make us suffer in order to punish us. On the contrary, God loves us and has good plans for us. He uses suffering in our lives only as an instrument with which to form his character in us and to cause us to grow to maturity. If we are surrendered to God, He will allow suffering because He loves us and wants us to grow; not because He wants to torture us. The principle that suffering for God’s will leads to growth and good character is set forth throughout scripture in verses such as 1 Peter 4:12 and James 1:2-4. In fact, we are encouraged to rejoice inasmuch as we are a part of the sufferings of Christ because we can identify with Christ in this way.
Abigail and David – Surrender and Character (1 Samuel 25)
To illustrate the point that God often allows suffering in order to accomplish good for us and for His kingdom, Nancy used the story of Abigail and David. Both characters were made to suffer for a time, but it was for God’s purpose, and in the end, they were rewarded for their suffering. Nancy sketched a bit of David’s background for us, explaining that it was twenty-two years between the time that he was told he would be king of Israel and the time when he actually became king. David suffered intensely during those twenty-two years because King Saul, who had been his good friend at one time, became murderously jealous of him and made several attempts on his life. Through this suffering, which was spent in caves and in other unwelcome places, David grew to be a man who had God’s proven character, a trait which served him well when he finally became a king.
Similar to David, Abigail also suffered intensely. She was married to a man who (it seems) did not have even the slightest redeeming quality. The Bible describes him as a fool, and based on the scenario outlined in chapter 25, it would not be inaccurate to compare him to a tyrant. Abigail was trapped in a marriage to a selfish, foolish man, a marriage which was most likely arranged for her. However, at the point that she meets David, she evinces godly characteristics. One could infer that this godly character was forged in her through the things she had to suffer in surrendering her will and life to the Lord. In the end, God delivers Abigail through Nabal’s sudden death and rewards her and provides for her through her subsequent marriage to David.
A Choice to be Made
Nancy ended her message by compelling us to consider our own situations. Have we truly surrendered our lives to the Lord? Yes, we are all in church, and many of us have taken the initial step of trusting Christ for our salvation, but as was the case with Craig, it is possible to be in church without really turning one’s life over to God to see what he will do with it. Nancy brought up a lot of the popular arguments against surrender – fear of what might happen, fear of what we might lose, and fear that God will make us suffer more than we are able to handle. But then she made this point: “You are going to suffer in this life. Suffering is inevitable because we live in a fallen world, full of sin and pain. Wouldn’t you rather suffer for doing the will of God and be rewarded for it rather than to suffer for nothing and in the end to be judged?” These last few words brought us face to face with a question that, at some point or another, begs an answer.
Scriptures Referenced in Nancy’s Sermon
I Samuel 25; 1 Peter 4:12; James 1:2-4; John 3:17; Jeremiah 29:11
Other Scriptures to Consider
Matthew 10:28-30
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