The Dreaming Revolutionary

Date: 2003

Location: RIFC. Frederick, MD

John 8:31-34

To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

They answered him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say that we shall be set free?”

Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. ³⁵ Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. ³⁶ So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.

When Jesus came he came to set us free.

Free from what?

1. Free from sin and its effect, its curse.

Romans 6:18-23

You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.

I put this in human terms because you are weak in your natural selves. Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness. ²⁰ When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. ²¹ What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! ²² But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. ²³ For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:1-2

Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, ² because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.

2. Free from religious bondage

The Work of the Spirit brings freedom – liberty – not bondage.

2 Corinthians 3:17

Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.

But many will try to put you in bondage, even your own thinking will put you in bondage.

Colossians 2:6-8

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, ⁷ rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.

Colossians 2:20-23

Since you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you still belonged to it, do you submit to its rules: ²¹ “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!”? ²² These are all destined to perish with use, because they are based on human commands and teachings. ²³ Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence.

Our freedom in Christ holds to different standards than the world, or religion.

Our freedom is a life that:

• Lives to give not get.
• A life that forgives and not hold offences.
• A life that accepts rather than rejects
• A life that is not bound to any kingdom of this world but the Kingdom of God which is righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.

But some are still in the cage of bondage even though the door is open.

They think they are still under the dominion of sin.

Of religion

Of pleasing man and his religious systems

In Christ you are no longer obligated to a religious system – but freedom in Christ to follow him by his Spirit.

John 3:5-8

Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. ⁶ Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. ⁷ You should not be surprised at my saying, `You must be born again.’ ⁸ The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”

We are like the wind!

How can you cage the wind?

Remember – freedom is not our ultimate goal, but the opportunity that freedom in Christ gives us to live as he meant for us to live.

In fact some are very insecure in that realm of freedom and quickly construct a cage around themselves again in order to feel secure or “at home.”

Like Israel and Egypt – even though they had been brought out of bondage, they wanted to go back for the comforts, the familiar territory.  They were willing to enter back into bondage because they were more comfortable there then in freedom.

Freedom does not bring us into a place of comfort – but usually to a place of fellowship and relationships that may bring pain because we become vulnerable.

But we must trust in the Lord rather than man.

We need to be free!

How do we react with this freedom?

Some take their liberty and go in a relationship with the Lord that becomes deeper and more powerful every day.

Others may blame others for the pain they are experiencing and may leave the cage empty and resentful, more lost in freedom than when they were in the cage!

So they build a new cage, and set up a new counterfeit religious experience and paradigm – but still missing the freedom we have in Christ.

Or, they pull away from all fellowship and become full of complacency and religion, bitter and alone.

We need to find that freedom outside the cage – outside of the box we have set ourselves in.

It may be disorienting at first – because living outside the cage, the box is different! What worked in the cage doesn’t work outside the cage!

To live in freedom, we need to learn a new way of living.

A few things to help you live outside the box – the cage:

1. Relax – this is God’s Work.

The bondage of religious obligation says “It’s all up to you.”

If God isn’t doing what You want – you have to work harder, pray more, stand firmer.

The focus is on you and your performance.

Outside the cage you performance, your best efforts will not accomplish God’s work.

Depend on him – not flesh.

What happens?

Instead of manipulating God – you rest as he works through you.

You trust his love more than your ability to fix things.

You rely on God alone for your spiritual nourishment and realize that if you depend on another for that nourishment you are back in the cage!

2. Give Up Your Illusion of Control

When you made Jesus Lord – he kept his end of the deal. The only amount of control you think you have is an illusion!

Yes – there is sowing and reaping, consequences for sin – but God is still in control!

Your scheming and manipulating never produce the results you expect.

When you realize He is in control – you are free to live in His purposes instead of your own.

3. Live for His Approval

The reason religious systems work is because they have an ability to exploit people’s desire to be accepted.

When you go with the program – you are awarded with approval.

When you don’t you are shunned, gossiped about or overlooked.

The desire to have people’s approval will eat up our passion for freedom in Christ as we focus on what people think rather than what God thinks.

Galatians 1:10

Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.

When you are set free from the cage – get ready for those around you to want to pull you back in with guilt manipulation and religious obligations.

Those still bound thinking freedom is in the cage – it is not!

4. Learn Grace in Opposition

Jesus said if we follow him others will speak against us, lie about us, and even exclude us.

You most likely won’t be stoned, but those in the cage will consider you dangerous, deceived and rebellious.

It does hurt! – But God knows how to comfort.

Remember – as long as you are reacting to something, you are being controlled by it!

5. Let Guilt Die

How do you feel when you say no to a religious obligation? – guilt?

Even if you know you have made the right decision guilt can gnaw at you.

If you are not careful, you will be led around by the desire not to feel guilty.

Guilt is manipulation and those who are religious will use it as a motivation.

You must let guilt die.

You also will realize that those who help you grow most in the Lord will never pile condemnation on you when you disappoint them, but will help you up.

Guilt drives sin into the closet rather than to the cross. When sin is in the closet it is most destructive!

6. Savor the Story

God wants us to know him.

What he is like, how he thinks, so that we can truly know him.

It does us no good if we know his Word but never know Him.

The Bible is not merely an owner’s manual with rules to be followed.

It is not a pile of proof texts to wage doctrinal wars.

It is the story of God making His reality known in the brokenness of our world.

We must grow up and feed ourselves, enjoy the feast he has prepared!

7. Be aggressive about cultivating relationships

Be ready to be used of the Lord among those who are around you every day.

As you are a blessing to those around you, you will discover that there are many around you who have been set free.  Make an effort to fellowship together.

8. Live Life! Rather than filling up on meetings.

Real community is a gift God gives out of growing friendships, not hat w can produce by methods or programs.

You cannot create it! We can only recognize it as God builds community around us.

Are meetings bad? No

But if they do not foster community – a gathering – a calling of the believers together in Christ – they are worthless and merely religious icons.

The best gatherings are those that emerge out of relationships where people are learning to share their walk with Jesus together.

9. Don’t Despise the Struggle

It is not easy living outside the cage of religious obligation and tradition, but the freedom is worth it.

What happens when you help a butterfly out of its cocoon?

You kill it!

God had designed the struggle of getting free from the cocoon so that when she is free, she will be able to fly.

Our struggles are similar – they draw us deeper into a relationship to him.

It is scary when all the props are gone – all that we have depended upon in the past to hang our religious identity on – but our identity needs to be Christ – not religion!

Share old illustration of church compared to a play or show – back stage  – audience

Now,

There is no show, no play, no back stage, no audience!

Outside the cage it is reality! Real life!

A life of freedom, of friendship with Jesus, a life of becoming what God wants you to be outside that cage.

Learn to live every day in the simplicity of relationship we have with Christ, free for him to take you where you have never been before!

\

Date: July 1992

Location: West Chester, PA

Article for The Daily Local News

These are days of “rumors of peace” throughout the world, many are waiting with great anticipation for a mighty move of peace and tranquility. Although this may seem to be a panacea and an impossibility, I would like to proclaim to you that it will be a fact! But only through the direct leadership of the King of Kings Jesus Christ who will return in the same manner in which he left (ACTS 1) to rule the earth as the Prince of Peace. Until then there will be warfare! There will be wars between nations, and the war against the Kingdom of Darkness.

The warfare I mention today is not the one with bullets and atom bombs, or foreign policy treaties that are held together by threats and fear, but a warfare that God has called every Christian to be committed too. A warfare against the Kingdom of Darkness. In II Timothy 2:3-4; the Apostle Paul writes: “Endure hardship like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.  No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs – he wants to please his commanding officer.”  The Word of God compares the life of a Christian to that of a soldier; a soldier who is not distracted from anything that is not his responsibility.

A good soldier knows to follow his commanding officer. The Christian’s commanding officer is the Lord Jesus Christ. Dedication to the Lordship of Jesus Christ as commander and chief is unfortunately an unpopular subject and tony an option. Many say as Wilber Reese did in his satirical poem:

“I’d like to by about $3.00 worth of God, Not enough to disturb my soul or sleep, but just enough to make me feel good and meet my simple needs. Not enough to make me love those I hate or that I am prejudice against; But enough to give me ecstasy- Not transformation! The warmth of a womb – not new birth!”

Does this sound like you? You can’t get a limited “measure of God” you either receive all of Him or none!  One of the reasons we have trouble following God is that we are looking for what we can get rather that what God wants us to do! An effective soldier always looks for the orders of his commander. If you join an Army for what you can get out of it, you will quickly find a way out!  A Christian automatically becomes a soldier of the Lord. A number of months ago in one of our prayer meetings a word of exhortation was spoken prophetically to the church.

The message from the Lord was: “I am raising up a new generation. A generation of believers who are not stained by the tradition, the religion, or the doctrines of men from former generations, but a new generation that will rise up like a mighty army, committed to the gospel of Jesus Christ. The previous generation will no longer hinder my work, for this new generation will greatly outnumber them, for many are waiting in homes, in schools, and in universities around us to hear the gospel so that they may respond to my word in faith and be born into my kingdom as a new generation. Therefore, I am calling you to prepare for harvest.  You must be ready! It is not the right time to prepare for births when the babies begin to come, but before they arrive.

You my people will serve as a mid-wife to this new generation and will teach them by my Spirit. This new generation will exceed beyond the churches, the fellowships, the denominations; their number will be much greater.  And I will send them out into the world with my word and they will reach nations that do not know me. They will reach cultures that do not know me.  They will be my army.”

My question to you today is are you ready to serve?  Are you ready to enlist in the army of God? Are you willing to totally abandon yourself into the arms of a holy, powerful, just, and merciful God?  Anything short of that is treason in God’s Army!

If you are not a member of the new generation of reformers made bold by the power of the Holy Spirit; today is your day of enlistment. Go before the Lord and repent of your sins, ask for His forgiveness, confess Him as your Lord and as your Savior, acknowledge His resurrection and you will be Born Again – redeemed – enlisted in the army of God!

You may already be a Christian but serving God for what you can get for yourself, therefore your commitment is on a shaky foundation (Matt.2:7) Or you may have considered your relationship with God as a personal private matter.  God is calling His Church to be militant against the Kingdom of Darkness, false doctrines, the ego of man and the idolatry of our age. This day God is calling you out to serve without compromise. Choose this day whom you will serve; life or death? Blessing or Cursing?  Choose life!

Submitted and Published in the Daily Local News, West Chester, PA

July 1992

Date: December 5, 1998

Location: HYCC, Thailand

Luke 1:5-17; 24-38

1. Introduction

Turn to Malachi is the last book if the Old Testament. (hold your place there)

• Malachi reminded the Jews that God’s promised Deliverer would come to save them.
• He also told them that, before the Deliverer came, God would send another prophet.
• This prophet’s work would be to teach the people so that they would be ready for the coming Savior.

After Malachi, however four hundred years passed during which God did not speak through any prophet – this often referred to as the “silent years.”

Quietly unnoticed by most men, God was making vast preparations for the fulfillment of His great promises to send a Savior for the whole world.

• He made the Greek language common to many parts of the world.
• He linked distant cities with the Roman roads.
• He dispersed His people to many different countries where they build synagogues and taught from His word.

The time had come.

God was ready to do what He had promised in the garden:

Genesis 3:15 – “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you wills strike his heal.”

The fulfillment of the promise begins with the story of an elderly Jewish couple who believed God and were awaiting for the fulfillment of His promises.

•  God promised that Zacharias and Elizabeth would have a son.

• Theme: Man must have faith in order to please God and be saved
• Theme: Man can come to God only according to God’s will and plan.

Luke 1:5,6 – In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. Both of them were upright in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commandments and regulations blamelessly.

Zacharias and his wife, Elizabeth, were Jews who trusted God and believed His Word.

• They offered sacrifices at the temple, just as God had commanded Moses.
• Because the trusted in God and came to Him the way He had told them, God accepted them just as He had accepted Able and all the others who had trusted Him from the beginning of the world.

Luke 1:7 – But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren; and they were both well along in years.

Both Zacharias and Elizabeth were now old, but they had never been able to have children.

Luke 1:8-10 – Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside.

Zacharias was one of the priests in the temple at Jerusalem.

• Theme: God communicates with man.

Listen to what happened to Zacharias while he was doing his work as a priest at the temple.

Luke 1:11-14 – Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth,

God’s angel promised Zacharias a son and told him he must name his son John.

• John was given the work of preparing the way for the Deliverer.

• Theme: God is everywhere all the time: He knows everything.
• Theme: God is faithful, He never changes.

Luke 1:15-17 – for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth. Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

The Lord know all about Zacharias’ son even before Elizabeth became pregnant.

• Everything is known to God before it ever happens.
• God knew all about us, too, before our parents knew we would be born! 

Psalm 139:13-16 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.

God had foretold about Zacharias’ son John, through the prophet Malachi.

Not only did God foretell many things through His prophets, but everything that He promised, He also fulfilled.

Malachi 3:1 – “See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the Lord Almighty.

Four hundred years before John was born, God told Malachi to write this about God’s messenger, John!

• Theme: Jesus Christ is God

Zacharias’ son would be a prophet who would prepare the people to receive the coming Deliverer.

The angel said that Zacharias’ son, John, would go ahead of the Deliverer to prepare a way for Him.

The angel called the coming Deliverer “the Lord.”

The coming Deliverer, the Saviour of men, was to be God Himself!

Luke 1:24,25  After this his wife Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion. “The Lord has done this for me,” she said. “In these days he has shown his favor and taken away my disgrace among the people.”

Elizabeth knew that God was the one who had made it possible for her to conceive.

• She was very thankful and happy.
• In those days, the Jewish people looked down on couples who weren’t able to have any children.
• Now Zacharias and Elizabeth were going to have a son in their old age.

• God Promised Mary a Son.

• Theme: God is faithful; He never changes.

It was now God’s time to fulfill all of His promises regarding the Deliverer.

Listen to what God says:

• Theme: God communicates with man.

Luke 1:26-31 – In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus.

God sent an angel to tell a virgin named Mary that God had chosen her to be the mother of the Deliverer.

Mary was just an ordinary young woman who, although she was a sinner, trusted in God to send the Deliverer.

• Theme: God is supreme and sovereign.

God chose Mary to be the mother of the Deliverer because  God does whatever He wants to do.  He is sovereign.  He does not ask anyone or have to answer to anyone for what He does.

• Theme: God is faithful; He never changes
• Theme: God is loving, merciful, and gracious.

Mary’s son was to be the promised Deliverer.

His name was to be Jesus, which means Savior or Deliverer.

God had never forgotten His promise to send a Deliverer.

God loved the whole world, and He wanted sinners to be delivered from the punishment they deserve.

• Mary’s Son Would be Both Man and the Son of God.

• Theme: Jesus Christ is God.
• Theme: Jesus Christ is Man.

The angel Gabriel also told Mary some amazing things about her future son.

Luke 1:32 – He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David,

Mary’s son was not only to be truly her son, but He would also be the Son of the Highest, the is, the Son of God.

Isaiah 9:6,7 – For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this.

Six hundred years earlier, God had announced these things to His prophet Isaiah.

As the Son of God, Jesus had many names.

Jesus is his name as a man – His human name.

Remember, there is only one God. God is revealed to us as three persons who are equal in every way. 

These three, who are the one God. Are God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit never had a body as we humans do. 

God is Spirit and doesn’t have a human body.  But the Savior had to be a human being just as we are – except that He must be sinless.

So that God’s plan about the Deliverer could be fulfilled, God the Son had to be born as a human being.

God chose Mary to be the mother of the Deliverer. 

The Deliverer who was the God the Son, had to come down from Heaven to be born on the earth as the child of Mary.  Mary’s son would be both God and man in one body.

This son, Jesus, would be fully God and fully man!

• Theme: God is faithful; He never changes

Furthermore, the angel told Mary that because the Deliverer would be a direct descendent of David the king, He was to be king over Israel.

He was to be king forever!

Luke 1:32-33 – He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”

God was going to do what He had promised King David.

God Keeps His Promises!

• Jesus, the Deliverer, would not have a human father.

Luke 1:34  – “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

Mary could not understand how she could have a child who wouldn’t have a human father.

Luke 1:35 – The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.

The angel said that God the Holy Spirit would perform the miracle.

• Theme: Jesus Christ is Holy and righteous.
• Theme: Jesus Christ is God.

Because Jesus would be born without a human father, He would be born sinless.

No descendent of Adam is holy and righteous.

• Every person in the world inherited Adam’s sin.
• We are all sinners because the sin of Adam was passed down to us.;

But Jesus’ father was God.

• God is perfect and holy, without sin.
• Jesus was the perfect Son of God, holy and sinless!

• Theme: God is all powerful.

Luke 1:36-37 – Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God.”

It was impossible for a virgin to have a child, just as it was impossible for Elizabeth, the mother of John, to have a child in her old age. Nevertheless, with God all things are possible. God can do anything!

God created the first man Adam, out of the dust of the ground, and God gives life to every person. It was not difficult for God to give this child to Mary without the baby having a human father. And neither was it hard for God to give Elizabeth a child in her old age. 

God can do anything!

• Theme: Man must have faith in order to please God and be saved.

Luke 1:38 – “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.

Mary trusted the Lord and accepted that it was God’s will for her to be the mother of the Saviour.

Conclusion:

Who was this Saviour to be?   Jesus

• The one announced in the Garden of Eden
• Descendent of David
• The Saviour
• The holy Son of God
• God the Son
• God in a human body – the holy, sinless Son, of the holy, sinless God.

Nothing is impossible for God – even in your life!

Date: July 12, 1992

Location: Believers Fellowship, West Chester, PA

Your nation wants you in the military.

Highly qualified ‑ smart – industrious.

You have to pass certain tests to become a member of the military.

You have to pass a physical exam, you can’t have a criminal record

Thousands of young people join the military, and we think that is quite normal ‑

Many of you are planning or have already been a part of the armed forces in our nation.

We don’t consider it strange.

But what if God decided to call together an army?

Not an army of soldiers equipped with earthly weapons, but with his power and authority?

Would we think that to be strange?

God wants you to serve in his forces ‑ the army of his Kingdom!

What’s the criteria?

Same as any nation? (see above)

No!  God is looking for bad men not good men!

God is looking for those with no qualifications in religion or tradition.

Not smart, but ignorant of the things we would think to be important to God.

Not industrious, but lazy when it comes to things of this life.

You can fail the Bible knowledge test, your physical , mental and spiritual examination ‑ your life can be in a wreck ‑ and God even loves those who have broken the law to join his army!

Are you in that number?

You say ‑ “not me! ‑ I’m glad I’m not like that!  I believe that God wants to use me because I am a good person, smart, healthy, righteous, I pray and read the bible!  I’m glad I’m not like the bad, the ignorant, the lazy, the law breaker, the unhealthy!”

Luke 18:9‑14  ⁹ To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everybody else, Jesus told this parable: ¹⁰ “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. ¹¹ The Pharisee stood up and prayed about himself: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. ¹² I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ ¹³ “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ ¹⁴ “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Who is God looking for?

The repentant sinner ‑ justified by God!

God is building an army.

An army of repentant sinners ‑ justified by God to storm hell’s territory he’s not going to use religious leaders ‑ hypocrites ‑ those who look down on the needy, but those who know their weaknesses  and fall on Jesus Christ for mercy and strength!

God is in the army building business today!

And he is calling you to join!

Joshua 7:1‑25  But the Israelites acted unfaithfully in regard to the devoted things; Achan son of Carmi, the son of Zimri, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of them. So the Lord’s anger burned against Israel. ² Now Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth Aven to the east of Bethel, and told them, “Go up and spy out the region.” So the men went up and spied out Ai. ³ When they returned to Joshua, they said, “Not all the people will have to go up against Ai. Send two or three thousand men to take it and do not weary all the people, for only a few men are there.” ⁴ So about three thousand men went up; but they were routed by the men of Ai, ⁵ who killed about thirty-six of them. They chased the Israelites from the city gate as far as the stone quarries and struck them down on the slopes. At this the hearts of the people melted and became like water.

⁶ Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown to the ground before the ark of the Lord, remaining there till evening. The elders of Israel did the same, and sprinkled dust on their heads. ⁷ And Joshua said, “Ah, Sovereign Lord, why did you ever bring this people across the Jordan to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us? If only we had been content to stay on the other side of the Jordan! ⁸ O Lord, what can I say, now that Israel has been routed by its enemies? ⁹ The Canaanites and the other people of the country will hear about this and they will surround us and wipe out our name from the earth. What then will you do for your own great name?”

¹⁰ The Lord said to Joshua, “Stand up! What are you doing down on your face? ¹¹ Israel has sinned; they have violated my covenant, which I commanded them to keep. They have taken some of the devoted things; they have stolen, they have lied, they have put them with their own possessions. ¹² That is why the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies; they turn their backs and run because they have been made liable to destruction. I will not be with you anymore unless you destroy whatever among you is devoted to destruction.

¹³ “Go, consecrate the people. Tell them, ‘Consecrate yourselves in preparation for tomorrow; for this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: That which is devoted is among you, O Israel. You cannot stand against your enemies until you remove it. ¹⁴ “ ‘In the morning, present yourselves tribe by tribe. The tribe that the Lord takes shall come forward clan by clan; the clan that the Lord takes shall come forward family by family; and the family that the Lord takes shall come forward man by man. ¹⁵ He who is caught with the devoted things shall be destroyed by fire, along with all that belongs to him. He has violated the covenant of the Lord and has done a disgraceful thing in Israel!’ ”

¹⁶ Early the next morning Joshua had Israel come forward by tribes, and Judah was taken. ¹⁷ The clans of Judah came forward, and he took the Zerahites. He had the clan of the Zerahites come forward by families, and Zimri was taken. ¹⁸ Joshua had his family come forward man by man, and Achan son of Carmi, the son of Zimri, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was taken. ¹⁹ Then Joshua said to Achan, “My son, give glory to the Lord, the God of Israel, and give him the praise. Tell me what you have done; do not hide it from me.” ²⁰ Achan replied, “It is true! I have sinned against the Lord, the God of Israel. This is what I have done: ²¹ When I saw in the plunder a beautiful robe from Babylonia, two hundred shekels of silver and a wedge of gold weighing fifty shekels, I coveted them and took them. They are hidden in the ground inside my tent, with the silver underneath.”

²² So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent, and there it was, hidden in his tent, with the silver underneath. ²³ They took the things from the tent, brought them to Joshua and all the Israelites and spread them out before the Lord. ²⁴ Then Joshua, together with all Israel, took Achan son of Zerah, the silver, the robe, the gold wedge, his sons and daughters, his cattle, donkeys and sheep, his tent and all that he had, to the Valley of Achor. ²⁵ Joshua said, “Why have you brought this trouble on us? The Lord will bring trouble on you today.” Then all Israel stoned him, and after they had stoned the rest, they burned them.

God is putting together an army to defeat the demonic forces in your lives, the lives a people around you and throughout this area!

Not bound by men’s traditions.

By their own understandings, own strengths, but bound to God!

An army of men & women who know they are sinners who depend totally on God and his strength rather than their own.

A people who are careful because they know their weaknesses ‑ And ready to fight the enemies of God!

A people who believe God at his word!

Mark 16:17‑18 … “And these sign will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out devils, they will speak with new tongues, they will pick up snakes with their hands, and when they drink deadly poison it will not harm them at all, they place their hands on the sick people and they will get well.”

What must I do to be a part of that army of believers?

We must realize that Jesus Christ came to earth to take care of our sins ‑ Weaknesses, he took the penalty for sin by dying on the cross for all of us so that we would not have the guilt of sin over us, but now we can have life!

First you must realize that God loves you:

John 3:16 ” for God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

John 10:10 …”I come that you might have life, and that you might have it more abundantly!”

Second you must accept the fact that you are a sinner:

Romans 3:23  “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”

Third, you must realize that his sin separates you from God and causes you to be “spiritually dead” in your sin.

Romans 6:23  “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life.”

Fourth, you must believe that Jesus Christ died for you so that you would not have to remain spiritually dead, but be made alive in Christ.

Romans 5:6‑8  “You see at just the right time when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly … But God demonstrated his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Acts 16:30,31  “…Sirs what must I do to be saved?  They replied, believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved.”

Fifth, You must accept that Jesus Christ is the only way to God, the only way of salvation.

John 14:6  “Jesus answered, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me.”

1 Timothy 2:5  “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus.”

Sixth, You must repent, turn from your sin and except Jesus as your Lord and Savior.

Acts 3:19  “Repent then and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out..”

Romans 10:9,10  “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe him in your heart that God raised him from the dead, You will be saved, for it is with the heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with the mouth that you confess you are saved.”

You must also realize that God will give you the ability, the power to obey and follow him.

John 1:12  “To all who received him, to those who believe in his name, he gave the right to become the Sons of God.”

Are you ready to be part of this army?

The people of God?

Then come to Jesus,

Jesus said John 6:37  “whoever comes to me I will never drive away.”

Date: January 4, 1992

Location: Believers Fellowship, West Chester, PA

Psalm 94:11 – “The Lord knows the thoughts of man, he knows that they are futile.”

Ephesians 4:17 -“So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking.”

What are your thoughts?

What do we say to yourself?

Many times our thoughts to ourself come automatic, and they are destructive!

What we think or say to ourself will govern the way we feel or act.

“That person doesn’t like me”

So, we avoid them or begin to dislike them.

“She must think I am stupid” so we try to prove we are smart, and become defensive.

Just because a thought “pops” into our mind doesn’t make it true!

Other phrases that pop into our minds are:

I should have…

I ought to….

I must….

And we become ruled by every thought that enters our minds rather than the Word of God!

We are not to be held captive by our own thoughts, but we are to capture our thoughts and make them obedient and submissive to God.

Let’s face it, our minds left to themselves are distorted and sick!

We have developed patterns of thinking over the years that will cause us to behave sinful as well as make us sick.

For example:

1. We may see things in a specific, narrow way. Someone compliments you on a project you’ve completed and gives you suggestions to improve what you did next time. Your mind ignores the praise and openly considers the suggestion as criticism. When we expect to hear the worst – we usually do.

• We see things in extremes. Either bad or good, no middle ground. “Just one mistake – that’s it! He blew, I’ll never trust him again!”

• We over generalize. If it happened once it will happen again. We become fatalistic.

• We assume we know what people are thinking.

“I know he doesn’t like me, he didn’t eat any of the food I brought.”

“They don’t want to come, so why invite them.”

Our conclusions are based on a thought – how dangerous!

• We make mountains out of molehills.

“Well, what if …”

“Our neighbor was robbed, what if we get robbed?”

• Everything is my fault.

Someone in your family is sad or upset and you say: “It must be my fault” “what did I do to cause him to feel that way?”

When someone makes a general statement about people, you say to yourself: “She means me!”

• If is feel this way it must be true!

If I feel guilty, I must have done something wrong. Your feelings will deceive you!

• It’s never my fault.

“He made me angry”, “She hurt me”

Or

“It’s always my fault”.

• You have set up a standard that is inflexible, correct, indisputable and absolute.

Therefore everyone should know what you know and act like you act!

They should have… or when you fail, I should have…

Or

I am always right, and you must prove it regardless of other opinions.

How do we stop these destructive thoughts?

Some suggestions:

1. Ask yourself – what is the evidence for my conclusion? Am I confusing thought with fact?

• Pray – commune with the Lord

Philippians 4:6-7 “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

• Read God’s word.

Renew your mind.

Philippians 4:8-9,11,13; “Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received form me, or seen in me, out into practice. And the God of peace will be with you….  I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances …  I can do everything through him who gives me strength.”

Ephesians 4:22-25; “You were taught with regard to your former way of life to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.  Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, or we are all members of one body.”

Romans 12:2; “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.”

Colossians 3:1-2; “Since then you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.”

The most solid, eternal righteous thought we can have, or words that we can speak to ourself is God’s Word!

2 Timothy 3:16,17; “All scripture is God breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”

Hebrews 4:12; “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any doubled edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and the attitudes of the heart.”

• Keep a journal.

At the end of the day, write down your thoughts on the day, you will find that you will test your thoughts before you write them down and bring them into submission to God’s word.  Thus renewing your mind!

Conclusion:

The thoughts we have, can bring life or destruction.  Conform your thoughts to God’s word and have life!

Amen

Date: May 13, 1990

Location: Believers Fellowship, West Chester, PA

What do you dream for your child?

What are your expectations of your children?

What do your parents expect of you?

What are some things that you have dreamed about doing?

These are popular questions, they affect us.

What your parents expect of you affects your life, your decisions.

What you dream what you desire, what you hope to accomplish in life effects your direction and well-being.

Eccl. 1:14 ; “I have seen all things that are done under the sun, all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.”

Do you believe this?

Picture a man up on a hill chasing after gusts of wind trying to capture it … first it seems playful and fun but as life goes on and this man is chasing the wind throughout all his life – what a tragedy!

This man has spent his life with no purpose, no meaning, no hope.

Mother’s – you have a responsibility to teach your child not to chase after the wind!  (father’s too!)

1. LET’S LOOK CLOSER AT THE BOOK OF ECCLESIASTES AND SEE THIS REAL-LIFE SCENARIO IN THE LIFE OF SOLOMON:

Chapter one:

Eccl 1:1-11 The words of the Teacher, son of David, king in Jerusalem: ² “Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher. “Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.” ³ What does man gain from all his labor at which he toils under the sun? ⁴ Generations come and generations go, but the earth remains forever. ⁵ The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises. ⁶ The wind blows to the south and turns to the north; round and round it goes, ever returning on its course. ⁷ All streams flow into the sea, yet the sea is never full. To the place the streams come from, there they return again. ⁸ All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing. ⁹ What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. ¹⁰ Is there anything of which one can say, “Look! This is something new”? It was here already, long ago; it was here before our time. ¹¹ There is no remembrance of men of old, and even those who are yet to come will not be remembered by those who follow.

V.1-11 everything is meaningless!     everything is without significance!

Eccl 1:12-18 ¹² I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. ¹³ I devoted myself to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under heaven. What a heavy burden God has laid on men! ¹⁴ I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind. ¹⁵ What is twisted cannot be straightened; what is lacking cannot be counted. ¹⁶ I thought to myself, “Look, I have grown and increased in wisdom more than anyone who has ruled over Jerusalem before me; I have experienced much of wisdom and knowledge.” ¹⁷ Then I applied myself to the understanding of wisdom, and also of madness and folly, but I learned that this, too, is a chasing after the wind. ¹⁸ For with much wisdom comes much sorrow; the more knowledge, the more grief.

V. 12 – 18 Wisdom is meaningless what kind of wisdom?

Certainly not the wisdom we find in the book of Proverbs!  That’s God’s wisdom!

There are two kinds of wisdom –

James 3:13-18  ¹³ Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. ¹⁴ But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. ¹⁵ Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. ¹⁶ For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice. ¹⁷ But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. ¹⁸ Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness.

World’s wisdom – earthly, unspiritual, demonic, it causes envy, selfish ambition, disorder and evil practices.

God’s wisdom – pure, peace loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.

You can’t chase after God’s wisdom – it becomes folly! Meaningless

Chapter two

Eccl 2:1-8 I thought in my heart, “Come now, I will test you with pleasure to find out what is good.” But that also proved to be meaningless. ² “Laughter,” I said, “is foolish. And what does pleasure accomplish?” ³ I tried cheering myself with wine, and embracing folly—my mind still guiding me with wisdom. I wanted to see what was worthwhile for men to do under heaven during the few days of their lives.

⁴ I undertook great projects: I built houses for myself and planted vineyards. ⁵ I made gardens and parks and planted all kinds of fruit trees in them. ⁶ I made reservoirs to water groves of flourishing trees. ⁷ I bought male and female slaves and had other slaves who were born in my house. I also owned more herds and flocks than anyone in Jerusalem before me. ⁸ I amassed silver and gold for myself, and the treasure of kings and provinces. I acquired men and women singers, and a harem as well—the delights of the heart of man.

V.1-8 Pleasures are meaningless.

“Are we having fun yet?”

Eccl 2:9-16  ⁹ I became greater by far than anyone in Jerusalem before me. In all this my wisdom stayed with me. ¹⁰ I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my work, and this was the reward for all my labor. ¹¹ Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun. ¹²        Then I turned my thoughts to consider wisdom, and also madness and folly. What more can the king’s successor do than what has already been done? ¹³ I saw that wisdom is better than folly, just as light is better than darkness. ¹⁴ The wise man has eyes in his head, while the fool walks in the darkness; but I came to realize that the same fate overtakes them both. ¹⁵ Then I thought in my heart, “The fate of the fool will overtake me also. What then do I gain by being wise?” I said in my heart, “This too is meaningless.” ¹⁶ For the wise man, like the fool, will not be long remembered; in days to come both will be forgotten. Like the fool, the wise man too must die!

V. 9-16  Success is meaningless.

There have been many who have achieved success and ended up destroyed by drug addiction and moral collapse.

There is the story of a minister who had everything he wanted. 

– A large church, one that needed him and used him well.  It was a place of security and financial blessing.  It couldn’t have planned it more picture perfect.  He had worked hard to get to where he was and he had worked hard to get to the pinnacle of success even in the eyes of his community.

Yet he was suffering from anxiety attacks, he regularly took tranquilizers to help him make it through the worships service, and he went through the week on “cruise control”.

Eccl 2:17-26  ¹⁷ So I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun was grievous to me. All of it is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. ¹⁸ I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me. ¹⁹ And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have control over all the work into which I have poured my effort and skill under the sun. This too is meaningless. ²⁰ So my heart began to despair over all my toilsome labor under the sun. ²¹ For a man may do his work with wisdom, knowledge and skill, and then he must leave all he owns to someone who has not worked for it. This too is meaningless and a great misfortune. ²² What does a man get for all the toil and anxious striving with which he labors under the sun? ²³ All his days his work is pain and grief; even at night his mind does not rest. This too is meaningless.

²⁴ A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This too, I see, is from the hand of God, ²⁵ for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment? ²⁶ To the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness, but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth to hand it over to the one who pleases God. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

V.17-26   Work is meaningless.

What does it count for?

Usually if you look for meaning in your work it produces ulcers, high blood pressure, stress and nervous disorders!

Chapter three

Eccl 3:18-22  ¹⁸ I also thought, “As for men, God tests them so that they may see that they are like the animals. ¹⁹ Man’s fate is like that of the animals; the same fate awaits them both: As one dies, so dies the other. All have the same breath; man has no advantage over the animal. Everything is meaningless. ²⁰ All go to the same place; all come from dust, and to dust all return. ²¹ Who knows if the spirit of man rises upward and if the spirit of the animal goes down into the earth?” ²² So I saw that there is nothing better for a man than to enjoy his work, because that is his lot. For who can bring him to see what will happen after him?

V.18-22 – No meaning except things as they are and just make the most of life!

Chapter four –

Eccl 4:1-3 Again I looked and saw all the oppression that was taking place under the sun: I saw the tears of the oppressed— and they have no comforter; power was on the side of their oppressors— and they have no comforter. ² And I declared that the dead, who had already died, are happier than the living, who are still alive. ³ But better than both is he who has not yet been, who has not seen the evil that is done under the sun.

V. 1-3 To even be born is meaningless!

It’s better not to even be alive – aborted!

Eccl 4:4-6  ⁴ And I saw that all labor and all achievement spring from man’s envy of his neighbor. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. ⁵ The fool folds his hands and ruins himself. ⁶ Better one handful with tranquility than two handfuls with toil and chasing after the wind.

V. 4-6 There is no meaning to keeping up with the Jones’s

Eccl 4:7-12 ⁷ Again I saw something meaningless under the sun: ⁸ There was a man all alone; he had neither son nor brother. There was no end to his toil, yet his eyes were not content with his wealth. “For whom am I toiling,” he asked, “and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?” This too is meaningless— a miserable business! ⁹ Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: ¹⁰ If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! ¹¹ Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? ¹² Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

V. 7-12   Being alone is meaningless.

Article – In newspaper on career moms …

Eccl 4:13-16 ¹³ Better a poor but wise youth than an old but foolish king who no longer knows how to take warning. ¹⁴ The youth may have come from prison to the kingship, or he may have been born in poverty within his kingdom. ¹⁵ I saw that all who lived and walked under the sun followed the youth, the king’s successor. ¹⁶ There was no end to all the people who were before them. But those who came later were not pleased with the successor. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

V. 13-16 – Advancement is meaningless!

Chapter five:

Eccl 5:1-7 Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. Go near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong. ² Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few. ³ As a dream comes when there are many cares, so the speech of a fool when there are many words. ⁴ When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow. ⁵ It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfill it. ⁶ Do not let your mouth lead you into sin. And do not protest to the temple messenger, “My vow was a mistake.” Why should God be angry at what you say and destroy the work of your hands? ⁷ Much dreaming and many words are meaningless. Therefore stand in awe of God.

V.1-7 Dreaming and talking about your dreams is meaningless!

Eccl 5:8-17   ⁸ If you see the poor oppressed in a district, and justice and rights denied, do not be surprised at such things; for one official is eyed by a higher one, and over them both are others higher still. ⁹ The increase from the land is taken by all; the king himself profits from the fields. ¹⁰ Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless. ¹¹ As goods increase, so do those who consume them. And what benefit are they to the owner except to feast his eyes on them? ¹² The sleep of a laborer is sweet, whether he eats little or much, but the abundance of a rich man permits him no sleep. ¹³ I have seen a grievous evil under the sun: wealth hoarded to the harm of its owner, ¹⁴ or wealth lost through some misfortune, so that when he has a son there is nothing left for him. ¹⁵ Naked a man comes from his mother’s womb, and as he comes, so he departs. He takes nothing from his labor that he can carry in his hand. ¹⁶ This too is a grievous evil: As a man comes, so he departs, and what does he gain, since he toils for the wind? ¹⁷ All his days he eats in darkness, with great frustration, affliction and anger.

Eccl 5:18-6:6  ¹⁸ Then I realized that it is good and proper for a man to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in his toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given him—for this is his lot. ¹⁹ Moreover, when God gives any man wealth and possessions, and enables him to enjoy them, to accept his lot and be happy in his work—this is a gift of God. ²⁰ He seldom reflects on the days of his life, because God keeps him occupied with gladness of heart.

6    I have seen another evil under the sun, and it weighs heavily on men: ² God gives a man wealth, possessions and honor, so that he lacks nothing his heart desires, but God does not enable him to enjoy them, and a stranger enjoys them instead. This is meaningless, a grievous evil. ³ A man may have a hundred children and live many years; yet no matter how long he lives, if he cannot enjoy his prosperity and does not receive proper burial, I say that a stillborn child is better off than he. ⁴ It comes without meaning, it departs in darkness, and in darkness its name is shrouded. ⁵ Though it never saw the sun or knew anything, it has more rest than does that man— ⁶ even if he lives a thousand years twice over but fails to enjoy his prosperity. Do not all go to the same place?

V. 18 – 6:6 – Better to be aborted than to be able to enjoy wealth!

It doesn’t matter what you do, dream desire, expect everything under the sun is meaningless and is just chasing the wind!

1. WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU HAVE REACHED A STATE OF MEANINGLESSNESS?

What are some signs of an individual who is struggling with the conclusion that everything under the sun is meaningless?

1. Boredom -I’ve tried everything, what do I do now?

Boredom will cause us to search for excitement – what we will find is destruction!

• Anxiety – worry to the point of panic.  A sense that your life is out of control and there is nothing you can do about it.

• A thirst for something more – this will lead you to perversion and excessive behavior.

• Dependence – always going to others to point them to the area of life that will satisfy the need for meaning.

• Irresponsibility – if i have no meaning what does it matter?

I have no real responsibility!

• Lack of goals – all is futile, I’ll just vegetate till I die!

• Depression – no motivation in life to the point that it interrupts your daily routine and activities.

• Addiction – you need something to ease the pain of meaninglessness.

• Aggression – if I can’t be happy – neither can the world!

Meaninglessness is throughout our society.

Never have we had more depressed, addicted and violent society than we have now.

Public health service –

• 10% of America suffers from a identifiable depressive disorder.
• Over 10 million Americans are alcoholics.
• Leading cause of death between 16 – 25 is alcohol related car accidents.
• 33 million Americans over 12 have used illegal drugs.
• 25% of all homes were touched by crime in 1985, usually between family and friends.
• 1/3 of all violent crimes are done by friends or family.
• Between 1958 and 1982 587,821 people committed suicide, which is an average of 23,500 per year. According to the National Institute of health the average is now over 75,000 per year.
• Suicide is the second leading cause of death in males between 25 & 45.
• More Vietnam veterans have died from suicide than from the war!

We live in troubled times!

A society that is without meaning!

1. WHAT ARE THE FACTORS WHICH CONTRIBUTE TO THE MEANINGLESSNESS IN PEOPLES LIVES?

(From statistical surveys and clinical reports)

1. Choosing money over meaning – in 1967 over 83 % of all students chose “develop a  meaningful life” as their primary goal in life.  In 1984 this answer was chosen by 47%; 43% chose being well off financially as their primary goal in life.

• Lack of purpose – Nothing to live for, the pain is not worth it.  “A child may fall down and skin his knee, but when the fun starts again the pain vanishes.”

• Affluence – If anything should help, money should!

• Fear of nuclear annihilation – eat drink and be merry for tomorrow we die!

• Pursuit of happiness – but we never get there.

• No clear definition of sin – right and wrong. The power of sin is not recognized.

• No sense of gratitude but, you owe me.

1. SO, WHAT DO WE DO?

Ecclesiastes 12:13-14  ¹³  Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. ¹⁴ For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.

We have a duty – service, to fear God and obey him.

Unless we do this we are only chasing the wind.

Do you want to catch the wind?

Do you want your children to catch the wind?

We need to go to the center of the problem – sin.

As we address the sin problem in our lives or our children’s lives they will encounter a wind that they will never have to chase!

The Holy Spirit!  Wind from heaven

The cure for a meaningless life is a life that is in the Spirit!

Surrendered to God!  Under the lordship of Jesus Christ!

When you feel that your life is lacking in meaning – you are lacking in relationship with God and under the lordship of Jesus!

“Where the Spirit of the Lord is (or where the Spirit is Lord) there is liberty!” 2 Cor 3:17

II Cor 4:16-5:9  ¹⁶ Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. ¹⁷ For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. ¹⁸ So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

5    Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. ² Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, ³ because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. ⁴ For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. ⁵ Now it is God who has made us for this very purpose and has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. ⁶ Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. ⁷ We live by faith, not by sight. ⁸ We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. ⁹ So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it

 v.16 Wasting away – meaningless

v.18 What do we see? – We see what is under the sun!  Which is temporary!

What we see in the Spirit is eternal and full of meaning!

5:5 Our purpose …. Vessels of his Spirit!

We need to fear God more than anything this life can hand us!

We need to understand that we are totally dependent on God!

John 15:1-5  ¹ “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. ² He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. ³ You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. ⁴ Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. ⁵ “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

v. 1 – 2 What is the relationship of the vine to the gardener?

He trims off all that is meaningless!

Everything in our life that has no meaning, he prunes it out!

v. 3 This is done through his Word – you know what has meaning and purpose by God’s Word!

v. 4 You must remain in Jesus to bear fruit, or to remain meaningful!

How do you remain in Jesus?

 v.7 – His words will remain in you – you will be a doer of God’s Word!

v.5  See him as the vine, you as the branch.

Without that continual relationship you will be fruitless – meaningless.

All that you do apart from his Word and his purpose is nothing – worthless, meaningless without

 purpose!

• HOW DO YOU PREVENT MEANINGLESS FROM COMING INTO YOUR LIFE?

As a mother

A father

A child

What do you have to teach your children?

Yes to fear God and obey him – but how?

Realize that sin has produced to main problems in the world:

Lack of meaning in life and misery in life.

The gospel solves both of those problems:

Luke 4:18 “The Spirit of the Lord is on me because he has anointed me to preach the good news to the poor.  He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

Phil 2:5 – “your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.”

Why are you here?

What is your purpose?

Is there something you are supposed to do?

Be a servant!

Those without meaning serve those with misery and the gospel is fleshed out in the world!

Unless we become like God we will always feel meaningless, and if you try to be like God without fearing him you will destroy yourself!

That is why we must fear him (know who we are in relationship to who he is and be at awe of your observation)

And obey him (if we obey him, we will be like him)

To parents:

Are you teaching your children so that they have purpose and meaning?

Do you teach them to be servants?

Or do you serve them?

If you serve them, they will grow up without meaning.

• THINGS A PARENT CAN DO TO ESTABLISH PURPOSE IN THE LIFE OF THEIR CHILD:

1. Give them a job to do every day that helps someone else. Learn to be a servant.

By the time a child reaches teen years they should be able to do everything in the home you do.

• Teach them that your relationship as husband and wife comes first and they are second.

This shows them that the world does not center around them, but in their homelife it is around mom & dad.

In the same way our lives do not center around what we can get from God, but what God wants from us!

• Teach them to finish what they start – faithfulness.

This is a character trait of God!

• Teach them that obedience is not an option – be consistent in your discipline.  This will prepare them to obey God.

• Father’s never allow your children to show disrespect in any degree towards your wife.

This will teach them how to respect of fear God when they are older.

• Teach them the Word of God, by reading and doing.

• Teach them to be still and listen, this will help them to learn from God and hear him.  If a child cannot be controlled when they are 2-3 they will never be controlled!

• Never justify their sinful behavior due to circumstance (tired, young, like their father, brother etc).

Without an awareness of sin, there will be no repentance.

Justification only comes through repentance and forgiveness – not understanding!

Let them constantly be reminded of a need for a Savior and Lord!

What about you – do you have meaning – or are you stuck somewhere in Ecclesiastes?

It’s time to surrender to the Spirit led life and fear God and obey him!

Amen!

Date: January 11, 1992

Location: Believers Fellowship, West Chester, PA

EXPECTING GOD TO DO HIS WILL

What are our expectations when we gather together?

Should we have any?

What happened when the Church in the New Testament came together?

Sing hymns, prayer, teaching, worship -minister to the Lord, revelation, equipping -body ministry – Gifts of Spirit,  God would move shake the place – God would in some way manifest his presence – not always, but it did happen.

I Corinthians 14:26;

“When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation.  All of these must be done for the strengthening of the Church.”

Not much else is said concerning the order of service, what we should do, expect, what form, or ritual should be established?

But we all come with some level of expectation –

What do you expect to happen?

…  (let congregation respond) …

Who is responsible to see that these expectations – assuming they are the right ones – are met?

The pastor? The worship leader? The elders?  The Congregation?

Who?

God!!!

Does God always meet your expectation?

Doesn’t God want to fulfill his Word?

If he does not fulfill his Word – why?

1. Problem:

• Wrong expectation?

Solutions:

• Stay within the biblical examples.
• Remember who is in charge.
• Are your expectations from him or a “sentimental journey” that you desire to go on?

2. Problem:

• Sin in the camp?

Solutions:

• Repentance – an attitude and an action.
• There will always be some level of sin in our midst.
  • That’s why God has given us grace and mercy
  • Jesus came to take the sin out of the camp, you can’t discipline it out.

3. Problem:

• Unbelief?  Lack of faith?
• I believe this is our greatest hindrance to seeing God fulfill his word in our midst.

Solution:

• Hebrews 11:6 “Without faith it is impossible to please God.”
• Have you every tried to please God by your actions rather than your faith?
• By your knowledge rather than your faith?
• By your discipline rather than your faith?
• By your religion rather than your faith?

Faith is crucial – totally trusting God at his word even if god’s word is contrary to what you see!

Israel heard God, saw God, and followed his pillar of fire by night and his cloud by day and still did not believe the promise, therefore they did not enter into what god expected for them!

They did not mix what they heard with faith.

Faith is entering into and being obedient in regards to what God has said and expects to bring to pass!

“Because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists.”

Why are you here?

Because you plan on hearing from God?

Or some crazed preacher?

To fulfill a religious habit?

Are you really here because you believe God exists and you expect him to be here?

It is easy to take an unbeliever to a place where the existence of God is kept on a philosophical plane rather than experiential plan.

To experience God is too much for those who do not believe in him.

You cannot please God unless you at least believe that he exists!

Why do people who have faith, please God?

Because they believe he exists …

Yes, but what does it mean that he exists, demons believe God exists, do they please God?

no!

You believe him to the point that you must come to him!

It says: “anyone who comes to him must believe he exists!”

The word for come is many times translated – draw near, or approach, come boldly as in Hebrews. 4:16.

Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Hebrews 11:5 By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death; he could not be found, because God had taken him away. For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God.

Look at Enoch, he didn’t just believe God was up there somewhere, but fellowshipped with him!

And this pleased God so much, God took him to his house to live!

“And … He rewards those who earnestly seek him.”

If you have faith, you will believe he exists and seek him and then God will reward you!

What is meant by seek?

Literally the phrase is “those who seek him out” translated elsewhere – searched intently, sought with tears.

Reward?

The word literally means a wage.

When you seek God – diligently he will “pay us” what he has promised.

What has he promised to pay us?

What are our wages – our reward?

His promises!  His kingdom!  Our inheritance!

God has even given us a deposit of his reward – the Holy Spirit!

2 Corinthians 1:22;  “He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.”

Ephesians 1:14;  “Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal , the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession – the praise of his glory.”

What has God promised you!

The Holy Spirit – his presence!

When you seek him, he comes!

James 4:8; “Come to God and he will come near to you …”

Conclusion:

When God comes what do you expect to happen?

If we truly have faith – we should come seeking God and expecting him to manifest a portion of the Kingdom of God in our midst thus, fulfilling his Word in our lives.

And this pleases him!

Anything less than this displeases him!

We must come with a heart full of Godly expectations, knowing that we will have an encounter with God through the Holy Spirit that will demonstrate God’s love, grace, authority and power.

Basically, his Kingdom.

If you come, not seeking, not expecting, you come in unbelief and his reward is withheld.

Let’s seek him!

And expecting him to fulfill his Word in your life by the power of his Spirit as we do.

Amen!

Date: July 12, 1992

Location: Believers Fellowship, West Chester PA

FEEDING THE 5000 – THE SHEPHERD’S BLESSING

MARK 6:30 -44 ³⁰ The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught. ³¹ Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.”

³² So they went away by themselves in a boat to a solitary place. ³³ But many who saw them leaving recognized them and ran on foot from all the towns and got there ahead of them. ³⁴ When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.

³⁵ By this time it was late in the day, so his disciples came to him. “This is a remote place,” they said, “and it’s already very late. ³⁶ Send the people away so they can go to the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.” ³⁷ But he answered, “You give them something to eat.” They said to him, “That would take eight months of a man’s wages! Are we to go and spend that much on bread and give it to them to eat?” ³⁸ “How many loaves do you have?” he asked. “Go and see.” When they found out, they said, “Five—and two fish.”

³⁹ Then Jesus directed them to have all the people sit down in groups on the green grass. ⁴⁰ So they sat down in groups of hundreds and fifties. ⁴¹ Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to his disciples to set before the people. He also divided the two fish among them all. ⁴² They all ate and were satisfied, ⁴³ and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces of bread and fish. ⁴⁴ The number of the men who had eaten was five thousand.

V.30-31: When we report to our Lord – He will call us aside to get alone with us.

v.32-33: This included many of John the Baptists disciples, He had just been beheaded.

v. 34:  Jesus is moved to compassion when He sees the crowd.

Why?

Like sheep w/out a shepherd – What is the condition of those who are w/out a shepherd?

MATTHEW 9:35-38 ³⁵ Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. ³⁶ When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. ³⁷ Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. ³⁸ Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”

They were harassed and helpless.

Jesus says to us verses 37 & 38….

Do we see the harassed?  Do we see the helpless?

They are the harvest that is now ready!

We need to be people of the shepherd! … Workers

JEREMIAH 23:1-6  “Woe to the shepherds who are destroying and scattering the sheep of my pasture!” declares the Lord. ² Therefore this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says to the shepherds who tend my people: “Because you have scattered my flock and driven them away and have not bestowed care on them, I will bestow punishment on you for the evil you have done,” declares the Lord. ³ “I myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them and will bring them back to their pasture, where they will be fruitful and increase in number. ⁴ I will place shepherds over them who will tend them, and they will no longer be afraid or terrified, nor will any be missing,” declares the Lord.

⁵ “The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will raise up to David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land. ⁶ In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. This is the name by which he will be called: The Lord Our Righteousness.

Jesus is the great Shepherd!

He will do the gathering.

He places shepherds over them to minister to them FAITH to dispel the fears.

Ministers to them peace, reconciliation and authority to dispel their terror!

When this is done, none of his sheep will be missing – his sheep!

Jesus will be our righteousness!

He is our righteousness!

V.35-36: Logical!?

Send them away to get their own food.

v.37:    YOU FEED THEM!

But Lord? – We don’t have the resources!

v.38:    Jesus takes inventory of what we have.

v.39-44: Then he gives us instructions – AS OUR SHEPHERD!

1. SIT DOWN – To recieve from Him, we must be in a posture to receive, to be still, get comfortable.

• IN GROUPS OF 50 TO 100 – Stay small enough that no one is overlooked!

• GIVE HIM WHAT YOU’VE GOT!

What have you got?  Nothing special?  Not enough?

• HE WILL BLESS IT!

• HE GIVES IT BACK TO OUR HANDS – and it has now got the potential of His ability!!!

His Nature!!!

More than enough!!!

Let’s learn from this:

We need to get to a posture where God can take us –

bless us

break us

use us …. Supernaturally!

Where he can take what we have,

bless it

break it

use it supernaturally!

Example – Jacob: 

Genesis 32  Jacob also went on his way, and the angels of God met him. ² When Jacob saw them, he said, “This is the camp of God!” So he named that place Mahanaim.  ³ Jacob sent messengers ahead of him to his brother Esau in the land of Seir, the country of Edom. ⁴ He instructed them: “This is what you are to say to my master Esau: ‘Your servant Jacob says, I have been staying with Laban and have remained there till now. ⁵ I have cattle and donkeys, sheep and goats, menservants and maidservants. Now I am sending this message to my lord, that I may find favor in your eyes.’ ”  ⁶ When the messengers returned to Jacob, they said, “We went to your brother Esau, and now he is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him.” ⁷ In great fear and distress Jacob divided the people who were with him into two groups, and the flocks and herds and camels as well. ⁸ He thought, “If Esau comes and attacks one group, the group that is left may escape.”

⁹ Then Jacob prayed, “O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, O Lord, who said to me, ‘Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will make you prosper,’ ¹⁰ I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness you have shown your servant. I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two groups. ¹¹ Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children. ¹² But you have said, ‘I will surely make you prosper and will make your descendants like the sand of the sea, which cannot be counted.’ ” ¹³ He spent the night there, and from what he had with him he selected a gift for his brother Esau: ¹⁴ two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams, ¹⁵ thirty female camels with their young, forty cows and ten bulls, and twenty female donkeys and ten male donkeys. ¹⁶ He put them in the care of his servants, each herd by itself, and said to his servants, “Go ahead of me, and keep some space between the herds.” ¹⁷ He instructed the one in the lead: “When my brother Esau meets you and asks, ‘To whom do you belong, and where are you going, and who owns all these animals in front of you?’ ¹⁸ then you are to say, ‘They belong to your servant Jacob. They are a gift sent to my lord Esau, and he is coming behind us.’ ” ¹⁹ He also instructed the second, the third and all the others who followed the herds: “You are to say the same thing to Esau when you meet him. ²⁰ And be sure to say, ‘Your servant Jacob is coming behind us.’ ” For he thought, “I will pacify him with these gifts I am sending on ahead; later, when I see him, perhaps he will receive me.” ²¹ So Jacob’s gifts went on ahead of him, but he himself spent the night in the camp.

²² That night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two maidservants and his eleven sons and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. ²³ After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his possessions. ²⁴ So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. ²⁵ When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. ²⁶ Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” ²⁷ The man asked him, “What is your name?” “Jacob,” he answered. ²⁸ Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome.” ²⁹ Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.” But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed him there. ³⁰ So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, “It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.” ³¹ The sun rose above him as he passed Peniel, and he was limping because of his hip. ³² Therefore to this day the Israelites do not eat the tendon attached to the socket of the hip, because the socket of Jacob’s hip was touched near the tendon.

Jacob on the run, He had deceived His brother Esau for the birthright.

Now He was forced to meet with Him by God’s command.

v.1-7:   Prepared for the worse

v.8-12:  Intercedes for Himself!

Remembers the promise.

v.13-23: Devises a scheme –

v.24:    He Got alone w/God

v.26:    YOU MUST BLESS ME!  Or all I have is all I’ve got!

YOU MUST BLESS ME!

V.27-32: ….

We need to have the determination of Jacob to “wrestle” with God till He blesses you and all that you have!

Then He will teach us!

Give us all that He is!

Change our name – who we are!

WE may develop a limp – BUT we will be Blessed by Jesus!

“LORD OF OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS!”

HE MAKES YOU HOLY –

How many of you are wrestling w/God?

We don’t have to wrestle anymore!

He is offering to you His blessing TODAY!

TO MAKE YOU RIGHTEOUS!

HOLY

PERFECT

You will no longer be just what you are

or

Have just what you have

BUT

ALL THAT HE IS NOW IN YOU!

ALL THAT HE HAS, IS NOW YOURS!

RECIEVE IT!

STAND & READ THE WORD TOGETHER …

PSALM 33 ¹ Sing joyfully to the Lord, you righteous; it is fitting for the upright to praise him.

²     Praise the Lord with the harp; make music to him on the ten-stringed lyre.

³     Sing to him a new song; play skillfully, and shout for joy.

⁴     For the word of the Lord is right and true; he is faithful in all he does.

⁵     The Lord loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of his unfailing love.

⁶     By the word of the Lord were the heavens made, their starry host by the breath of his mouth.

⁷     He gathers the waters of the sea into jars; he puts the deep into storehouses.

⁸     Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the people of the world revere him.

⁹     For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm.

¹⁰   The Lord foils the plans of the nations; he thwarts the purposes of the peoples.

¹¹   But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations.

¹²   Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he chose for his inheritance.

¹³   From heaven the Lord looks down and sees all mankind;

¹⁴   from his dwelling place he watches all who live on earth—

¹⁵   he who forms the hearts of all, who considers everything they do.

¹⁶   No king is saved by the size of his army; no warrior escapes by his great strength.

¹⁷   A horse is a vain hope for deliverance; despite all its great strength it cannot save.

¹⁸   But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love,

¹⁹   to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine.

²⁰   We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield.

²¹   In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name.

²²   May your unfailing love rest upon us, O Lord, even as we put our hope in you.

PSALM 40 ¹ I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry.

² He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.

³ He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord.

⁴ Blessed is the man who makes the Lord his trust, who does not look to the proud, to those who turn aside to false gods.

⁵ Many, O Lord my God, are the wonders you have done. The things you planned for us no one can recount to you; were I to speak and tell of them, they would be too many to declare.

⁶ Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but my ears you have pierced^, ; burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not require.

⁷ Then I said, “Here I am, I have come— it is written about me in the scroll.

⁸ I desire to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart.”

⁹ I proclaim righteousness in the great assembly; I do not seal my lips, as you know, O Lord.

¹⁰   I do not hide your righteousness in my heart; I speak of your faithfulness and salvation. I do not conceal your love and your truth from the great assembly.

¹¹   Do not withhold your mercy from me, O Lord; may your love and your truth always protect me.

¹²   For troubles without number surround me; my sins have overtaken me, and I cannot see. They are more than the hairs of my head, and my heart fails within me.

¹³   Be pleased, O Lord, to save me; O Lord, come quickly to help me.

¹⁴   May all who seek to take my life be put to shame and confusion; may all who desire my ruin be turned back in disgrace.

¹⁵   May those who say to me, “Aha! Aha!” be appalled at their own shame.

¹⁶   But may all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you; may those who love your salvation always say, “The Lord be exalted!”

¹⁷   Yet I am poor and needy; may the Lord think of me. You are my help and my deliverer; O my God, do not delay

Let’s worship Him w/ a new song:

HOLY UNTO THE LORD

Date: 1985

Location: Believers Fellowship

INTRODUCTION:

JOHN 2:1-11 –     On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, ² and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. ³ When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.” ⁴ “Dear woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My time has not yet come.” ⁵ His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” ⁶ Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.⁷ Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim. ⁸ Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.” They did so, ⁹ and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside ¹⁰ and said, “Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.” ¹¹ This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed at Cana in Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.

Jesus is revealing to us important principles of how we are to serve Him.

Notice how casual Jesus performed this miracle… (no showmanship…grandstanding display etc.)

Tell the story etc…

1. FOUR PRINCIPALS FOR A SERVANT TO FOLLOW

From this account of Jesus’ life we can learn four principles as to how Jesus desires for us to respond to Him as we serve Him. (verse 7)

PRINCIPLE # ONE :

(USUALLY) WHEN JESUS IS ABOUT TO GIVE A BLESSING TO US – HE GIVES A COMMAND.

“Fill the jars with water.”

Other examples: 

• Blind man – wash off the mud…
• Man with palsey – stretch forth your hand…
• Peter go back out into the lake…  Peter,
• “Come” unto the water…
• Lazarus …”Come Forth”
• “Take up your bed”  and on and on….
• Dry Bones—Live!

The benefits OF the Gospel came with obedience to His call to believe and to repent.

Faith is obedient Believe … then receive!

First principle Jesus shows us is that He issues commands to those whom He will bless!

PRINCIPLE # 2:

HIS COMMANDS ARE NOT TO BE QUESTIONED, BUT OBEYED.

“People want wine, why should we fill the jars with water?

Doesn’t make sense!” “We don’t need water, we need wine!”

They had heard Mary v.5

They did not need to know why!!   BUT JUST OBEY!

(others may say)

“Maybe we need to do it our way, we’ve never got wine this way before”

“Maybe we should take up a collection and go buy some more wine”

“It can’t be that easy … just go get water and we all have wine?”

“only believe..???”

“Shouldn’t we have to do something else to get God to bless us?”

“Getting water is so trivial …. He must want us to do something else!”

SECOND PRINCIPLE then is … DO WHAT HE SAYS

PRINCIPLE # 3:

WHEN WE RECEIVE A COMMAND FROM THE LORD, BE ZEALOUS IN DOING IT!

They filled the jars to the brim!

Do what He has asked you to do to overflowing!

No restrictions …. all your might!

    believe …  preach …  give …  repent …  pray … study the Word …  etc….

Throw yourself into what God wants you to do!

Be extreme!

PRINCIPLE # 4:

WHEN WE OBEY HIM, IT DOESN’T LEAD US TO BE INDEPENDENT FROM HIM, BUT PROVES US TO BE MORE DEPENDENT ON THE LORD.

Some may say:

“God can do what He wants without my help, He’s that big!”

“Why does He need me, He can make the water He needs, He can make the wine appear without water!”

“When He is ready to do it He will do it, What does my attitude have to do with it?”

Our works are like the water … of no use till Jesus gets a hold of it! 

What value was the water at the wedding? 

They didn’t need water!  They needed wine!

When Jesus asks us to do something – He will prove we need Him!

HUMAN ACTION FALLS SHORT OF THE NEED OR DESIRED END, BUT GOD HAS CALLED FOR IT TO BE NECESSARY!

Jesus could have said: “Go to the waterpots and draw out the wine.”

Why didn’t He do this?

He was proving His ability –

v. 9 – The master did not know where the wine came from, the servants did! 

They could not have said it must have already been in the pot!

Those who serve Him – obedient to Him get first hand knowledge of His work! 

Example:

Evangelism – those who lead someone to Jesus know their commitment, but their friends & relatives may be skeptical.

Those who are on the “sidelines” don’t know for sure when you lead others to Jesus you know His power!

You want to know Jesus’ miraculous power?

GO AND FILL THE WATER JARS!

1. APPLICATION OF THESE FOUR PRINCIPLES:

FIRST – USE THE ABILITIES YOU HAVE FOR THE LORD.

Jesus could have asked angels to get the water!

“GO WITH WHAT YOU’VE GOT “

“Silver & Gold have I none but such as I have…”

Use what you have and Jesus will transform it for His work.

Do all that you can do … THAT’S YOUR WATER HE WILL TURN IT INTO WINE!

SECOND – WE HAVE TO USE THE THINGS THAT GOD APPOINTS IN OUR LIVES TO “FILL OUR JARS WITH WATER”

1. Study the Word – fill your heart & mind with His word.

Hear the Word – listen to God’s word – spoken – fill your heart

• Attend those things God has ordained to fill us:

Worship service, HFG, BSOB, Morning Prayer, Men’s & Women’s Fellowship … etc

FILL YOUR JARS WITH WATER!

• Serve with all our might –

CHILDREN’S CHURCH -BSOB -WORSHIP GROUP -NURSERY -HFG -ETC..

DO IT WELL … FILL YOUR JARS TO THE BRIM!

THIRD – WHEN YOU’VE DONE ALL THAT YOU CAN DO – THERE IS STILL A GREAT DEFICIENCY IN ALL THAT YOU HAVE DONE

It’s Just water!

SO – TRUST IN THE LORD TO TRANSFORM YOUR WORK

Give all your work to Him in prayer & intercession allow Him to take it and transform it.

His work will not be in vain…

“Paul plants. Apollos watered.. but GOD GIVES THE INCREASE!

CONCLUSION:

LET’S FILL OUR JARS WITH WATER TO THE BRIM!

BE OBEDIENT WITH ZEAL!

V.11 … BELIEVE HIM AND LIVE!

One day we will be with Him in a marriage feast that He has prepared for us and He will say “Well done my good & faithful servant!”

AMEN!