08-29-21 “Not: What are you waiting for? Rather: what are you doing while waiting?”

Scripture      Acts 17 & Luke 12:35-40

                                                  

 Acts 17
When they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue. 2 As his custom was, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, 3 explaining and proving that the Christ had to suffer and rise from the dead. "This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Christ," he said. 4 Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and not a few prominent women.
          5 But the Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city. They rushed to Jason's house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd.  6 But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some other brothers before the city officials, shouting: "These men who have caused trouble all over the world have now come here, 7 and Jason has welcomed them into his house. They are all defying Caesar's decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus." 8 When they heard this, the crowd and the city officials were thrown into turmoil. 9 Then they made Jason and the others post bond and let them go.
          10 As soon as it was night, the brothers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. On arriving there, they went to the Jewish synagogue. 11 Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. 12 Many of the Jews believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men.
          13 When the Jews in Thessalonica learned that Paul was preaching the word of God at Berea, they went there too, agitating the crowds and stirring them up. 14 The brothers immediately sent Paul to the coast, but Silas and Timothy stayed at Berea. 15 The men who escorted Paul brought him to Athens and then left with instructions for Silas and Timothy to join him as soon as possible.
          16 While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols. 17 So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there. 18 A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to dispute with him. Some of them asked, "What is this babbler trying to say?" Others remarked, "He seems to be advocating foreign gods." They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection. 19 Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, "May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting? You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we want to know what they mean." 21 (All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas.)
 
22 Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: "Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you.
          "The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. 'For in him we live and move and have our being.' As some of your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring.'
          "Therefore since we are God's offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone — an image made by man's design and skill. In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead."
          32 When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but others said, "We want to hear you again on this subject." 33 At that, Paul left the Council. 34 A few men became followers of Paul and believed. Among them was Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, also a woman named Damaris, and a number of others.
 
We are waiting for the return of Christ – what are we doing till then? Like Paul, share the message in a way that makes sense to those who are in the waiting room with you.
 
Paul used the SOCRATIC method – discussion. I gave his proclamation but see vs 16ff While Paul was waiting he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there. 18 A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to dispute with him. Some of them asked, "What is this babbler trying to say?" Others remarked, "He seems to be advocating foreign gods." They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection. 19 Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus,

 

The Socratic method comes directly from the philosopher Socrates who lived in Athens some 400 before Paul. He taught people how to reason and come to an informed conclusion. That philosophical atmosphere was still present when Paul ended up in Athens.
          Paul used ‘dialegomai’ dialogue which occurs 10 times in Acts 17-24. It means to reason. The method Paul used is exactly the method that is needed today. He faced people in opposition to the message and people open to the message as we do also. There are 6 significant Greek words in this passage that clearly spell out Paul’s sharing of the good news. I am seriously condensing it for you now.
1                    Reasoned – dialogue
2                    Explained – “were not our hearts burning” – Eumaeus
3                    Proved – demonstrated the validity of his claims.
(1 Peter 3:15-16   Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.)
4                    Proclaimed – made a clear presentation of the gospel
(Heb 9:27-28   Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.)
5                    Persuaded – Discussion for its own sake has little value (me selling rainbows – couldn’t close)
6                    Conversion – attaching themselves to the community and God’s word.
 
The danger of discussion is only discussing without ever trying to persuade someone to Christianity – people would complain that we are intolerable. We can show respect, listen and respond to a felt need but must not remain there or the person never has their true need met – salvation through Christ alone.
 
“Not: What are you waiting for? Rather: what are you doing while waiting?”
Is the wrong title – What you are waiting for in this case is important because it determines what you do while waiting. If you are waiting for Christ to return, you will be letting others know what they have to look forward to when our waiting is over and Christ welcomes us to our heavenly home – forever!
Luke 12:35-40
"Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, like men waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him."

08-22-21 “Living with significance in an unholy culture”

“Living with significance in an unholy culture”
“Standing upright, not uptight, in an ungodly culture”

I will call for these Slides:Awake 1 then Awake 2       

 

 

 Scripture                                       Daniel 1-4 & John 15:5-8

When the Jews were taken from Israel as captives to Babylon under King Nebuchadnezzar, (Babylonian Captivity) the king order Ashpenaz (chief official) to find among the Jews…Daniel 1:4 …young men without any physical defect, handsome, showing aptitude for every kind of learning, well informed, quick to understand, and qualified to serve in the king's palace. He was to teach them the language and literature of the Babylonians.

After 3 years of training, the 4 men chosen were placed into King Nebuchadnezzar’s service. The king found them more wise than any Babylonians already in his service. The Fantastic Four Jews, now serving the King of Babylon were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. Ashpenaz gave them new Babylonian names: to Daniel, Belteshazzar; to Hananiah, Shadrach; to Mishael, Meshach; and to Azariah, Abednego.

          After a time, King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream which caused him to become anxious and not able to sleep. So he summoned (M.E.S.A.) the magicians, enchanters, sorcerers, and astrologers to interpret his dream so he could stop dreaming it.

          They were stoked and ready to give an interpretation as soon as the king told them his dream. The king said, Dan 2:5-12 "This is what I have firmly decided: If you do not tell me what my dream was and interpret it, I will have you cut into pieces and your houses turned into piles of rubble. But if you tell me the dream and explain it, you will receive from me gifts and rewards and great honor. So tell me the dream and interpret it for me."

The astrologers answered the king, "There is not a man on earth who can do what the king asks! No king, however great and mighty, has ever asked such a thing of any magician or enchanter or astrologer. What the king asks is too difficult. No one can reveal it to the king except the gods, and they do not live among men."

          The king sent out a decree that all Babylonian wise men will be killed (which included who?) Right! Belteshazzar, Shadrach, Meshach, & Abednego. When Daniel got wind of it he asked the commander of the guard to take him to the King. He agreed to do so the next day so Daniel went home and prayed with the other 3 as they also praised God. On his way to the king the next day, he told the commander, not to kill the wise men of Babylon – he saved all their lives, not just the 4.

To the King, Daniel said, Daniel 2:27  "No wise man, enchanter, magician or diviner can explain to the king the mystery he has asked about, but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries. He has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in days to come.”

 

Daniel told what the dream was (a great statue that would be shattered) and its interpretation (Babylon will eventually be crushed by another kingdom) and King Nebuchadnezzar bowed before Daniel honoring His great God. He put Daniel in charge of all the wise men and he stayed in the royal court, and the other 3 were set up as administrators in the land.

Oddly enough, even with that dire interpretation, Nebuchadnezzar built a giant statue and ordered everyone to bow down and worship the statue whenever the music sounded. Some of the wise men (who were saved by Daniel and his friends) complained to the king that some Jews refused to bow down and worship the statue at the sound of the music. He ordered Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to come before him and told them to bow down at the proper time (because this is the new decree – this is what we do in our culture) and if they don’t they will be thrown into a blazing furnace. They replied, Dan 3:16-18  "O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. 18 But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up."

          Nebuchadnezzar was stunned and furious at their response and had the furnace heated 7 times hotter than normal. It was so hot that the soldiers assigned to throw them into the furnace burned up as they got close and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego fell into the furnace.

          Daniel 3:24-30

Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisers, "Weren't there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?"  They replied, "Certainly, O king." He said, "Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods." Nebuchadnezzar then approached the opening of the blazing furnace and shouted, "Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!" So Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the fire. Everyone saw that the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair of their heads singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them. Then Nebuchadnezzar said, "Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who has sent his angel and rescued his servants! They trusted in him and defied the king's command and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God. Therefore I decree that the people of any nation or language who say anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego be cut into pieces and their houses be turned into piles of rubble, for no other god can save in this way." Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the province of Babylon.

SUMMARY OF WHAT’S NEXT

Nebuchadnezzar has more dreams and must glorify the one true God or will end up eating grass like the cattle – a year later he claims all glory for himself and god sends him away as promised. When he turns from his sin and gives God glory he is then restored.

Then Nebuchadnezzar’s son takes over and when he uses temple items of gold from Jerusalem at a party, God writes a message on the wall which he calls Daniel in to interpret it. He does and the king dies and Darius takes the throne. He is going to put Daniel in charge of his whole kingdom which makes others jealous, but they can’t find anything wrong to charge against him, so they hatch a plot. They said to Darius, “the king should issue an edict and enforce the decree that anyone who prays to any god or man during the next thirty days, except to you, O king, shall be thrown into the lions' den.” Notice they didn’t say thrown into a furnace.

Of course they caught Daniel through his window, 3 times a day praying toward Jerusalem and they couldn’t wait to tell Darius.

Then the men went as a group to the king and said to him, "Remember, O king, that according to the law of the Medes and Persians no decree or edict that the king issues can be changed."  So the king gave the order, and they brought Daniel and threw him into the lions' den. The king said to Daniel, "May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you!" A stone was brought and placed over the mouth of the den, and the king sealed it with his own signet ring and with the rings of his nobles, so that Daniel's situation might not be changed. Then the king returned to his palace and spent the night without eating and without any entertainment being brought to him. And he could not sleep.

          At the first light of dawn, the king got up and hurried to the lions' den. When he came near the den, he called to Daniel in an anguished voice, "Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to rescue you from the lions?"

          Daniel answered, "O king, live forever! My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me, because I was found innocent in his sight. Nor have I ever done any wrong before you, O king."

          The king was overjoyed and gave orders to lift Daniel out of the den. And when Daniel was lifted from the den, no wound was found on him, because he had trusted in his God.

          At the king's command, the men who had falsely accused Daniel were brought in and thrown into the lions' den, along with their wives and children. And before they reached the floor of the den, the lions overpowered them and crushed all their bones.

          Then King Darius wrote to all the peoples, nations and men of every language throughout the land: "May you prosper greatly! "I issue a decree that in every part of my kingdom people must fear and reverence the God of Daniel. For he is the living God, and he endures forever; his kingdom will not be destroyed, his dominion will never end. He rescues and he saves; he performs signs and wonders in the heavens and on the earth. He has rescued Daniel from the power of the lions." So Daniel prospered during the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus the Persian.

APPLICATION

Painter Andrew Wyeth’s Understanding of What Doesn’t Show on the Canvas Helps Him Better Draw What Does show. SLIDE: “tree”

       Andrew Wyeth painted a picture of General Lafayette’s quarters near Chadds Ford, Pa., with a sycamore tree behind the building. When his brother first saw the painting, Andrew wasn’t finished with it. Andrew showed his brother a lot of extra drawings of the trunk and the sycamore’s gnarled roots, and his brother asked, "Where’s all that in the picture?" "It’s not in the picture," he said. "For me to get what I want in the part of the tree that’s showing, I’ve got to know thoroughly how the tree is anchored." I find that remarkable. He could draw the tree above the ground with such authenticity because he knew exactly how the thing was growing in the ground.   Close Slide: “tree”

When we know that we are anchored firmly in the providence of God, like Daniel, like the other 3, we can stand firm and solid. We might not go around broadcasting to everyone about the roots we have, but those roots are important if we ever hope to stand firm.

WHERE IS JESUS?

          In light of that thought, and these two stories including the fantastic 4, what does that show us about God and what does it say about Jesus. After all, these are HIStory.

          The story of Daniel and the story of Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah are the same story. They show the same thing about who God is. In each of their lives, God is the underground where these 4 men planted themselves and where their roots grew deep. It allowed them in the face of adversity to have their tree above ground stand strong in a culture that was in complete opposition to their beliefs, but instead of uprooting and running away to plant themselves in a religious bubble (as many Christians try to do) they bloomed where ever they were planted 1) away from Jerusalem (the holy city of God) in Babylon, the most pagan place on earth, or 2) in a fiery furnace where any other tree would be completely incinerated, to 3) a den of hungry lions where that tree could have been clawed and mauled to death.

          Because they were so firmly rooted in God, they could stand anywhere and show what was right without having to devalue the God-given gift of humanity with those they encountered. They could have shouted, “You can’t burn us up because God is on our side and if you do he will kill you” Instead they calmly stated the facts, “God will save us from the fire, if not, we won’t bow the knee to your gods.” No argument, no condemning, no blame, just the facts so they would notice God’s glory when it was revealed.

          Where was Jesus in these stories? Why did the hungry lions not eat David? Jesus, in the form of an angel shut the mouths of the lions. Do you not see this is Christ himself? It says that Daniel, exiled to Babylon from Judah, was placed into the lion’s den which was covered with a large stone – wait for it, and it was sealed with the king’s own signet ring. This was a preview for what Jesus would one day experience. A large stone covered his tomb and at Pialte’s command, the guards ‘sealed” it, and though Jesus, the lamb of God was dead in his sealed tomb, he rose from the dead as – what? The lion of Judah!

          Jesus in the furnace is more obvious. Nebuchadnedzar saw a 4th men walking around who looked like a son of the gods. Of course, that was Jesus! He was with them in the furnace and kept them from being burned alive.  Here now these words of Jesus to you and me…

          Think about who God is – the soil of these 4 men who grew their roots deep into him so they could stand upright, not uptight in the ungodly culture around them.

And Jesus says to you…John 15:5-8

"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. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.”

08-15-21 “The giant in front of you is not bigger than the God who is in you!”

Scripture      1 Samuel 17:1-58

(Right After Special Music)  MOVIE CLIP – Facing the Giants Official Trailer

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 1 Samuel 17               THE BATTLE LINE SET UP

 The Philistines pitched camp between Socoh and Azekah.

SLIDE 1Valley of Elah        

King Saul and the Israelites pitched camp in the Valley of Elah.  As they each drew up battle lines on either side of the valley,  the Philistines occupied one hill and the Israelites another, with the valley between them.

 One Philistine warrior stepped out from among all the others; his name was Goliath. He was over nine feet tall. He wore a bronze helmet and a coat of scale armor of bronze weighing 5000 shekels (78 lbs).  On his legs he wore bronze greaves, had a bronze javelin slung on his back. His spear shaft was like a weaver's rod, and its iron point weighed 600 shekels 15lbs vs. 3lbs).

His shield bearer went ahead of him.

 Goliath stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel, "Why bother using your whole army? Am I not Philistine enough for you? And you're all committed to Saul, aren't you? So pick your best fighter and pit him against me. If he gets the upper hand and kills me, the Philistines will all become your slaves. But if I get the upper hand and kill him, you'll all become our slaves and serve us. I challenge the troops of Israel this day. Give me a man. Let us fight it out together!" Goliath’s challenge, for 40 days straight, terrified Saul and all the Israelites.

 GOD’S VICTOR WILL COME FROM BETHLEHEM

A man named Jesse from Bethlehem had 8 sons. Jesse's 3 oldest sons, Eliab, Abinadab, and Shammah had followed King Saul to the war. His youngest son’s name was David who had previously gone to play soothing music for Saul whenever he got depressed. Once the Israelites moved for battle, little David stayed in Bethlehem and tended his father's sheep.

Jesse wanted to know how his oldest sons were doing, so he told David, "Take some roasted grain and bread for your brothers and hurry to their camp (20 miles away). Also, take a lot of cheese and give to the commander of their unit. See how your brothers are and bring back some assurance from them. They are with Saul, fighting against the Philistines."

David left early the next morning leaving his flock with a shepherd, loaded up the food and set out, as Jesse had directed. He reached the camp as the army was going out to its battle positions, shouting the war cry. (David must have been excited that he was going to witness his brothers and other great warriors going to battle against the Philistines)

Israel and the Philistines were drawing up their lines facing each other. David left his things with the keeper of supplies, ran to the battle lines and greeted his brothers. As he was talking with them, Goliath, the Philistine champion from Gath, stepped out from his lines and shouted his usual defiance, and David heard it. When the Israelites saw the man, they all ran from him in great fear. (Think about this – Goliath had now been doing this for 40 days, would they give a war cry while lining up and then run every time Goliath gave his challenge? The Philistines must have always had a great laugh and returned to their camp thinking what losers the Israelites are. Although, I wonder why they kept it up for 40 days instead of just attacking the Israelites. Hmmm)

David asked the men standing near him, "What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and removes this disgrace from Israel? Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?" The Israelites told him, "Do you see how this man keeps coming out to defy Israel? The king will give great wealth to the man who kills him. He will also give him his daughter in marriage and will exempt his father's family from taxes in Israel. This is what will be done for the man who kills Goliath."

Eliab, David's oldest brother, heard this conversation, and in anger asked, "Why have you come down here? And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the desert? I know how conceited you are and how wicked your heart is; you came down only to watch the battle." "Now what have I done? Can't I even speak?" He then turned away to someone else & had the same conversation with them about what would be done for the one who killed Goliath. What David said was overheard and reported to Saul, and Saul sent for him.

DAVID TALKS TO SAUL

David said to Saul, "Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him." Saul replied, "You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him, he has been a fighting man from his youth; and you are just a musician, and only a boy at that." But David said to Saul, "Your servant has been keeping his father's sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine."  Who can argue with that resume - Saul said to David, "Go, and the Lord be with you."  Then Saul, the tallest man in Israel, dressed David in his own tunic, a coat of armor and a bronze helmet on his head. David fastened on his sword over the tunic and tried walking around, because he was not used to them. "I can’t go in these, I am not used to them." So he took them off. Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd's bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine. Note that David used only what was immediately accessible. He didn’t need fancy weapons.

Goliath, with his shield bearer in front of him, kept coming closer to David. Goliath had to be shocked that they finally were sending someone to fight.  He looked David over and saw that he was only a boy, and he despised him cursed David by his gods. He said to David, "Am I a dog, that you come at me with sticks? Come here, and I'll give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!"  David said, "You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will hand you over to me, and I'll strike you down and cut off your head. Today I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord's, and he will give all of you into our hands."

1 Samuel 17:48 As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him. KEY VERSE As the Giant grew larger and got closer, David did not hide, did not maneuver into position, he ran right at the Giant!

49 As he is running, David reaches into his bag and takes out one stone, puts it in his sling and hurls it directly at Goliath’s vulnerable spot – his forehead. The only place uncovered and not protected by the shield bearer in front of him. There is not anywhere else David could have aimed for and caused any harm – not the top of his head, not his chest or arms or feet or legs, only one place. Once he knew that one place of vulnerability of the giant, he then had to be right on target.  he slung the stone and struck Goliath on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell facedown on the ground. Sank into his forehead? If David had not been running right at him, he probably could not have hit him that hard.

 David ran and stood over him. He took hold of the Philistine's sword and drew it from the scabbard. With Goliath’s own sword, David first killed him, then cut off his head with the sword.

THERE GO THE PHILISTINES

When the Philistines saw that their hero was dead, they turned and ran. Then the men of Israel and Judah surged forward with a shout and pursued the Philistines to the entrance of Gath and to the gates of Ekron. Their dead were strewn along the Shaaraim road to Gath and Ekron. When the Israelites returned from chasing the Philistines, they took all the stuff from their camp.

DAVID’S TROPHY

David kept the Goliath’s weapons and took his head to Jerusalem.

 APPLICATION

From David’s story we learn, not when God is on your side, but when you are on God’s side, you can do amazing things, even take down a literal giant.

 ― Max Lucado, Facing Your Giants: God Still Does the Impossible says, “Satan vies for the bedside position, hoping to be the first voice you hear. He covets your waking thoughts, those early, pillow-born emotions. He awakes you with words of worry, stirs you with thoughts of stress. If you dread the day before you begin your day, Mark it down; your giant has been in your head.”

 David began each day in praise – Consider what would happen if you began your day with David’s greatest psalm of praise. Share the HS movement for Psalm 145. An acrostic of the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet (13b)

Psalm 145

I will exalt you, my God, the King; I will praise your name forever and ever.

2 Every day I will praise you and extol your name forever and ever.

3 Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom.

4 One generation will commend your works to another; they will tell of your mighty acts.

5 They will speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty, and I will meditate on your wonderful works.

6 They will tell of the power of your awesome works and I will proclaim your great deeds.

7 They will celebrate your abundant goodness and joyfully sing of your righteousness.

8 The Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, and rich in love.

9 The Lord is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made.

10 All you have made will praise you, O Lord; your saints will extol you.

11 They will tell of the glory of your kingdom and speak of your might,

12 so that all men may know of your mighty acts and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.

13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and your dominion endures through all generations.

13b The Lord is faithful to all His promises and loving toward all he has made.

14 The Lord upholds all those who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down.

15 The eyes of all look to you, and you give them their food at the proper time.

16 You open your hand and satisfy the desires of every living thing.

17 The Lord is righteous in all his ways and loving toward all he has made.

18 The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.

19 He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them.

20 The Lord watches over all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy.

21 My mouth will speak in praise of the Lord. Let every creature praise his holy name forever and ever.

 

 

 

SONG: God of Angel Armies

08-08-21 “Off center for Jesus”

Scripture    Acts 9:1-19

Embodying a Decision

Billy Graham had a weekly radio show titled The Hour of Decision. Normally it was a tape recording of the service and message he’d given at a recent evangelistic rally. And at the conclusion of every message, Graham would issue an invitation for anyone to make a commitment to Jesus Christ, and to do so by getting up out of their seat and making their way to the front, where Graham had been preaching.
Coming forward, Graham would say, was an outward demonstration of this inner desire. He insisted that those so moved would take these physical steps to begin a new spiritual journey. This was, for them, the hour of decision. Billy Graham was tapping into something perhaps even deeper than he knew. Any time a person feels prompted to leave the present in order to embrace a new pathway in life, a decision is required. It’s not a decision just made in the head, or even the heart; it’s something embodied. It requires a physical step forward, leaving behind our desk, or friends, or comforts as we start to walk, vulnerably, into an unknown future.

Acts 9:1-21
Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord's disciples. He went to the high priest 2 and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3 As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?"
          5 "Who are you, Lord?" Saul asked.
          "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting," he replied. 6 "Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do."
          7 The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. 8 Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9 For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.
          10 In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, "Ananias!"
          "Yes, Lord," he answered.
          11 The Lord told him, "Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight."
          13 "Lord," Ananias answered, "I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your saints in Jerusalem. And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name."
          15 But the Lord said to Ananias, "Go! This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for my name."
          17 Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, "Brother Saul, the Lord-Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here — has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit." 18 Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul's eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19 and after taking some food, he regained his strength.
          Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. 20 At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God.

The Conversion Experience is Different for each of us
          Paul’s experience is dramatic. My experience was dramatic, not in the sense I was fighting against Christianity, but in that it was immediate and exceptionally real. However, most do not experience conversion as in the days of Billy Graham or the tent revival meetings. Those who grow up in the church often come to Christ over time. As well, we live in much more skeptical times with so many lies all around us, that it is difficult to put faith in anyone or anything in an instant. Therefore, many today who are outside the church also come to Christ slowly, over time until that moment when the recognition of conversion becomes real!
 
What is Conversion?
In England in 1955, a prominent atheist/humanist gave a series of lectures attacking Christianity. In response, the Anglican clergyman John Betjeman, wrote the following poem that deals with the question of Paul’s conversion, and conversion at large:
Saint Paul is often criticized
By modern people who’re annoyed
At his conversion, saying Freud
Explains it all. But they omit
The really vital point of it,
Which isn’t how it was achieved,
But what it was that Paul believed.
…
What is conversion? Not at all
For me the experience of St Paul,
No blinding light, a fitful glow
Is all the light of faith I know
“Which sometimes goes completely out
And leaves me plunging round in doubt
Until I will myself to go
And worship in God’s house below –
My parish church – and even there
I find distractions everywhere.
…
What is Conversion? Turning round
To gaze upon a love profound.
For some of us see Jesus’ plain
And never once look back again,
And some of us have seen and known
And turned and gone away alone,
But most of us turn slow to see
The figure hanging on a tree
And stumble on and blindly grope
Upheld by intermittent hope.
God grant before we die we all
May see the light as did St Paul.
 
 
Out of the Center
The word eccentric comes from a combination of the Greek terms’ ex (out of) and kentron (center). When combined, ekkentros means “out of center.” The term gained currency in the late Middle Ages, when astronomers like Copernicus dared to suggest that the earth was not at the center of the solar system. By claiming the earth in fact orbited the sun, Copernicus became the original eccentric. Enter Richard Beck, a professor from Abilene Christian University, who pushes the definition of eccentricity a bit further.
In his book The Slavery of Death, Beck takes its literal meaning (“out of center”) and suggests that an eccentric identity is an identity where the focal point of the self is shifted to God. He says, “The ego, in a kind of Copernican Revolution, is displaced from the center and moved to the periphery. The self is displaced being the ‘center of the universe’ so that it may orbit God.”…

The alternative, Beck says, is what Martin Luther called incurvatus in se, the self “curved inward” upon itself, with the ego at the center of our identity. “Incurvatus in se suggests that human sinfulness is rooted in self-focus, self-absorption, and self-worship.”  It’s me at the center. A true conversion to Christ involves displacing me and becoming truly “off-center.”
 
          The Apostle Paul was off-center for Jesus, John Betjeman was off-center for Jesus, Richard Beck was off-center for Jesus, Jeff Cooper is off-center for Jesus. Are you off-center for Jesus, or do you need to get yourself off the throne of self, move off center and allow Jesus his rightful place on the throne at the center of your life.
 
SONG: “Jesus at the Center”  Click this link for song: Jesus at the Center

0 8-01-21 “The one that almost got away”

Scripture       Jonah 1:1-4-11

DRAMA: Enter with a sign that says, “Turn or Burn!” and “The End is Near”

Ps 7:11-13  God is a righteous judge, a God who expresses his wrath every day. If he does not relent, he will sharpen his sword; he will bend and string his bow. He has prepared his deadly weapons; he makes ready his flaming arrows.

JOKE: “Repaint and thin no more”

ACT 1

Scene 1  -  Jonah is commissioned by God to go to Nineveh and preach against it because of its great wickedness. Jonah lived in Gath-Hepher and was told to go to Nineveh, the largest city in the world and the capital of Assyria (in modern day Iraq). It was representative of the entire pagan world.

Scene 2 – Jonah ran away to head for Tarshish. He found a boat in Joppa (where Peter raised a dead girl to life and stayed at the home of Simon the tanner) heading for Tarshish and paid for his ticket and got on board. Tarshish, believed to be in Spain 2500 miles in the opposite direction – or in Jonah’s mind – the end of the world where God would not find him.

Scene 3  -  Jonah told the people on board about God calling him to a task and how he didn’t want to do it so he decided to run away and this boat was the best and fasted way to run away and hide from God. NOTE: He did not want to witness to the pagans in Nineveh, and ended up on a ship full of sailors who were what? PAGANS/sailors who travel all over the world – another representation of who needs to have a personal relationship with the one true God who Jonah is supposed to serve.

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          (PAUSE) Had anyone else done that before? Genesis 3:8-13 (MSG)  When they heard the sound of God strolling in the garden in the evening breeze, the Man and his Wife hid in the trees of the garden, hid from God.

God called to the Man: "Where are you?"

He said, "I heard you in the garden and I was afraid because I was naked. And I hid."

God said, "Who told you you were naked? Did you eat from that tree I told you not to eat from?"

The Man said, "The Woman you gave me as a companion, she gave me fruit from the tree, and, yes, I ate it."

God said to the Woman, "What is this that you've done?"

"The serpent seduced me, and I ate."

          Do you know anyone else who has run away and tried to hide from what God has called them to do? Either because they are willfully disobedient or because they have become complacent with God’s call on our lives?

          Most of the stories we have looked at are like a what? A window to see who God is. This story is absolutely a mirror in which God wants us to see ourselves. Let’s continue to see HIStory:

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Scene 4  -  God sends a great wind causing a violent storm, the ship is about to break apart in the middle of an open sea where they will all surely die. The sailors are screaming for help from their many different gods while throwing all cargo over board.

Scene 4A  -  While that is happening on deck, Jonah is asleep in a cabin below deck. (makes us think of Jesus asleep in a boat with terrified disciples who were facing the same fate until Jesus woke up and calmed the storm.) The captain found Jonah and woke him saying, “How can you sleep? Get up and call on your god. Maybe he will take notice of us, and we won’t all die.”

Scene 5  -  The sailors cast lots to see whose god was responsible for the storm, the lot fell on Jonah. They asked him “who is responsible for this?” and “who are you, where are you from, what do you do?” Jonah said, “I am a Hebrew and I worship the God of heaven who made the sea and the land.”

Scene 5A  -  “What can be done to make this storm (getting worse by the minute) stop?” “God is mad with me, throw me into the sea and it will stop.” “No!” They rowed as hard as they could but the storm became more wild. So, these pagan sailors prayed a preemptive prayer of forgiveness to Jonah’s God. "O God! Don't let us drown because of this man's life, and don't blame us for his death. You are God. Do what you think is best."

          They threw him over and the storm calmed down, assuming that he had drowned in the sea. Jonah 1:16  At this the men greatly feared the Lord, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows to him.

Jonah 1:17  But the Lord provided a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was inside the fish three days and three nights.

Scene 6  -  Jonah prayed a prayer of repentance and hope in God. After 3 days in the belly of the fish God caused the fish to vomit and Jonah was spewed out onto dry land.

ACT 2

Scene 1  -  (Chapter 3) The word of the Lord came to Jonah a 2^nd time.  Go to Niniveh with the message I told you. He obeyed and gave a dire warning. The king and all the people relented and put on sackcloth and ashes and believed in the one true God.

Scene 2  -  God forgave the Ninevites and brought no harm to them.

Scene 3  -  Jonah was miffed and prayed, Jonah 4:2-3  "O Lord, is this not what I said when I was still at home? That is why I was so quick to flee to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. Now, O Lord, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live."    But the Lord replied, "Have you any right to be angry?"

Scene 4  -  Jonah went outside the city and sat down to pout. God grew a plant to give him shade and Jonah was pleased. In the morning God sent a worm to destroy the plant and Jonah was furious because the sun was extremely hot.

Scene 5  -  Jonah 4:9-11  But God said to Jonah, "Do you have a right to be angry about the vine?"   "I do, I am angry enough to die."  But the Lord said, "You have been concerned about this vine, though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died overnight. But Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well. Should I not be concerned about that great city?"

Scene 6  -  You and I are scene 6. We do not find out how Jonah responded, so we have to ask how we respond. The biblical mirror is staring us right in the face and asking the question, Will you be my witness, even to your enemies, will you trust me with your life and theirs? Will you stop running and hiding from what I am calling you to do and on the boat or dry ground will you tell others that there is a God who is building His kingdom and he wants everyone to be a part of that glorious kingdom here and in eternity?

SING:  “BUILD YOUR KINGDOM HERE”