“Then Jesus shouted, “Lazarus, come out!” And the dead man came out, his hands and feet bound in grave clothes, his face wrapped in a headcloth. Jesus told them, “Unwrap him and let him go!””John 11:43-44 NLT
One of the downsides of my job as pastor is that I’m around death and people dying. It’s hard to see people go through sickness unto death and it’s hard to see the people who love them suffer so much from their loss.
In this story we see a miracle taking place as Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead. This was a great miracle - but it needed a finishing touch.
The man was raised but was not yet completely free. He was still wrapped in his grave clothes.
Jesus turns to his disciples and says, “Unwrap him and let him go.”
It’s the same message that Jesus is turning to you and I for our participation. People come to church who have been set free from sin and death and now Jesus looks at us and says, “Take their grave clothes off.”
There are many Christians who are still wearing their grave clothes. They have been made alive by the grace of Jesus Christ but they continue to wear their grave clothes.
Such was the case with the church at Corinth.
They were saints (I Cor. 1:2). But they were still wearing their old sinful grave clothes.
1. (1:10-13) - divisions
2. (3:1-4) - carnal
3. (5:1-2) - fornication and indifference to fornication
4. (11:17-22, 30) - heresies and abuse of the Lord’s Supper.
Lazarus was moving around but he was still bound hand and foot. He probably shuffled like a man in a sack. He was a Christian Zombie.
As a pastor, this is exactly how many people come to church - they’ve had an experience with God but they are not yet totally free.
They come to church but are still in the grave clothes of rebellion, sin, bad habits and addictions, etc.
But isn’t that like all of us? There are times when we need assistance and there are times when we’re called upon to give assistance.
It’s kind of like a butterfly’s cocoon. As an unbeliever, sin was your life. You wrapped yourself in sin and sought for fleeting peace and safety there.
But when Christ transformed you into His own righteousness you were expected to work out your salvation. This would mean struggling past the sins that had been such a large part of your past life.
The struggle is hard but it also strengthens you so that, once free, you may mount up with wings as eagles.
The grave clothes were left on so that the disciples might enter into rare fellowship with Christ.
They could say, "Our Lord raised Lazarus, and I was there and helped to unloose him from his grave-clothes."
There is a very special sweetness in the knowledge that we may have done something to cheer, or to teach, or to help sanctify a soul. This gives you a vested interest in that person.
There are 2 reasons why brothers and sisters in Christ ought to be quick and ready to help each other in the removal of grave-clothes.
1. The Lord commands it. He encourages us to comfort the feeble and support the weak. If He commands something - there need not be any other reason.
2. But there is this also, every child of God has, at some time, felt the pressure and imprisonment of the grave-clothes of our past life. We should be the first to sympathize and the first to run to the aid of those who need it.
Selfishness and pride are arrogant sins and God hates them. We must be willing to follow the example of Jesus and sacrifice for the benefit of others and so that the name of Christ will always be glorified.
Bring on the Zombies!
“As Jesus continued on toward Jerusalem, he reached the border between Galilee and Samaria. As he entered a village there, ten lepers stood at a distance, crying out, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” He looked at them and said, “Go show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed of their leprosy. One of them, when he saw that he was healed, came back to Jesus, shouting, “Praise God!” He fell to the ground at Jesus’ feet, thanking him for what he had done. This man was a Samaritan. Jesus asked, “Didn’t I heal ten men? Where are the other nine? And Jesus said to the man, “Stand up and go. Your faith has healed you. ”” Luke 17:11-17, 19 NLT
If there is one sin that most prevalent today, it is the sin of ingratitude. God does so much for us. Our indebtedness to him is enormous and yet we rarely or at least infrequently offer thanks for what he has done. In fact, most professing Christians don’t even offer thanks over their meals much less offer thanks over all that God does in their lives.
Our passage of scripture today reveals a healing that Jesus does over 10 lepers. That is a huge miracle but it's not what this passage is about. The focal point of this passage is this: only 1 leper came back after being healed to ask for forgiveness.
Let's talk about leprosy first. From what I'm told - it's not the leprosy that kills a person but the absence of pain. Their hand could land in the fire and they wouldn't feel anything. They could bleed out without them even knowing that that they were cut.
It was a terrible disease that destroyed their bodies. It was highly contagious. But that's not the worst part. The worst part is the separation from family, friends and society that they have to live with.
I love this story. Jesus comes into the village and meets with them. There is no problem or disease that our Lord and savior is afraid of. Jesus went out of His way to a place that man had proclaimed as "unlawful" and reached in out to them to bring healing and deliverance.
When they could not get to Jesus - Jesus got to them.
Now look at verses 13 and 14. “And they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us. And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go shew yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed.”
All ten utter the same prayer. Notice two things here quickly.
They cried out in prayer to Jesus for healing, which Jesus does. He then tells them to go to the priest and show them that they were healed.
They were all healed of their leprosy. Yet only one of the ten returned to offer thanksgiving.
I see God touch many lives but I also often see an ingratitude for what God has done for us.
All of the men had reason to praise God, but only one actually gave it.
The Object Of Praise- Where are the other nine? I have no doubt that after they were declared clean by the priest they made their way to be with their family and their friends. To hug and kiss the wife and the children. To visit with Mom and Dad. To talk with friends. Their minds were occupied on all that the blessing brought to their lives. But one. One loved his wife and children just as much as the others. One wanted to hug and kiss his wife and children just as much as the others. One wanted to spend time with his friends just as much as the others. One wanted to enjoy the blessing just as much as the others.
But one had his priorities in order. One did not get so wrapped up in the blessing that he forgot the blesser. One put family, friends and fellowship on hold so that he could worship the one that made his being with his family and friends possible.
Notice that with a loud voice he glorified God. With the same loudness and intensity he cried for mercy, he glorified God.
Many times we cry loud for help and low with praise. But with the same zeal we sought help we should praise him. And he fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks; and he was a Samaritan.
He was not a Jew, he was not worthy of this healing. He was not worthy to receive God’s help. But by grace he was healed and he comes to worship the one who unconditionally healed him.
Perhaps you've never been healed of a terrible disease like leprosy. But that doesn't mean that Godhasn't done anything for you.
I read a story recently about a father and mother of a young man killed in the military. One day they came to the pastor and told him the wanted to give a monetary gift as a memory to honor their son who died in battle. The pastor said, "That’s a wonderful gesture on your part. He asked if it was ok to tell the congregation and they said that it was. So the next Sunday he told the congregation of the gift given in memory of the dead son. On the way home from church, another couple were driving down the highway when the father said to his wife, "Why don’t we give a gift because of our son?" And his wife said, "But our son didn’t die in any conflict! Our son is still alive!" Her husband replied, "That’s exactly my point! That’s all the more reason we ought to give in thanks to God."
You have much to be thankful for today. Take a moment right now and thank God for what He's given you, for your family, for your health, etc. You've been blessed of God by so many things. Give Him thanks today.
““Sell your possessions and give to those in need. This will store up treasure for you in heaven! And the purses of heaven never get old or develop holes. Your treasure will be safe; no thief can steal it and no moth can destroy it. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.” Luke 12:33-34 NLT
When it comes to finances there are plenty of opinions about what to do with and how to spend or save your money.
Some people are excessive saver's and others are excessive spenders. Both have their downfalls.
Jesus warns us to not put all our eggs into one basket and just store up treasures on earth but to invest in that which is eternal - by investing in God's kingdom.
Jesus said if we put God’s kingdom first (and by that he included our treasure) He will provide everything we need here on earth.
By storing treasure in heaven we break the bonds of greed and materialism, and we learn to trust in God as our provider rather than in our own ability to stockpile for the future, and we also build God’s kingdom here on earth, all at the same time.
When we do that - we break the bonds of greed and materialism because, as Jesus said, “where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Where you invest your treasure, that is where your heart is.
If we place our treasure in stuff, where is our heart? In materialistic things. If we place our treasure in God’s priorities, where will our hearts be? Our hearts will slowly become focused on God and His priorities.
The two are always tied together because we place our money where our real priorities lie. If you let me look at your checkbook and all your assets I could tell you where your heart really lies, and what your priorities really are.
Look at these surprising numbers about priorities of the average American...
- The average American spends - $1,350 per year for soda
- The average American spends - $1,100 per year for coffee and tea
- The average American spends - $3,500 per year for beer, wine, and alcohol
- And... the average American gives - $14 per year to the hungry and homeless
This should tell us a lot about where our hearts really are.
If our priority should be storing up treasure in heaven, how do go about doing that? Somehow I don’t think you can ship your cash or possessions to heaven. I don’t think UPS or FedEx deliver there. As the saying goes, ‘you can’t take it with you.’
A great way to store up treasures in heaven is to GIVE TO THOSE IN NEED.
Jesus tells us one way of storing up our treasure in heaven in 12:33 “Sell your possessions and give to the poor.”
Did you realize that 28 % of children in developing countries under age 5 are underweight because of malnourishment,
An infant born in a developing nation is 10 times more likely to die at birth than in a developed nation.
A mother is 32 times more likely to die during childbirth in a developing nation.
More than half the world’s children are suffering the effects of poverty, war and HIV/AIDS. UNICEF Annual Report, 2004
The United States has the highest homeless rate of the top 21 developed countries.
As a result of a tsunami a few years ago, 15 million people lost their jobs, their livelihood…over 5 million Indonesians had no clean water, no electricity, no medical care.
Right now the global orphan population is over 110 million children.
• 15 million U.S. children live in poverty…
• 12 million U.S. children go to bed hungry every night…
• 7 million U.S. children are homeless…
• 4½ million U.S. children lack adequate medical treatment.
There are 629 million children living in the world today…
- 72% -- 452 million -- will live at or below the poverty line…
- 76% -- 478 million -- will be functionally illiterate…
The Bible tells us that the very first Christians did exactly what Jesus said. They literally sold their possessions and gave to those in need. Listen to what the Bible shares about these first Christians.
Acts 2:44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need.
If you want to invest in eternity - ask God to put a burden on your heart to help someone who is in real need. If you don't know of anyone or any situation - ask me. I can give you all sorts of needs that could use your help. I know of orphanages in Pakistan, Cambodia, Mexico, Sri Lanka and many more.
I know of some deserving young people that need help to go to Bible School to be trained for ministry.
I know of families that are living below the poverty line in our own city and in our own church.
I could go on and on with many needs that you can invest into "eternity."
As we end this year - I pray that God would stir your heart and that you would invest where the kingdom of God is going to outline you. It is then that you will feel "truly blessed of God."
“Jesus called a little child to him and put the child among them. Then he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven. So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. “And anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf is welcoming me. But if you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin, it would be better for you to have a large millstone tied around your neck and be drowned in the depths of the sea.” Matthew 18:2-6 NLT
One of my favorite things to do is to greet people at the front door of our church. I enjoy "connecting" even if it's in a small way to each and every person - especially the children. I try to always get down to their level and look them in the eye and give them a big hug. To me, they are so precious to God.
Jesus felt the same way - Children are special in the kingdom of God. Jesus reminds us that if our faith is not like that of a child - we cannot get into heaven.
Here are some things about children that will help us in regard to our own faith.
1. A child is totally dependent upon his father.
He is trusting. A child knows that he doesn’t know very much and needs to trust to his wise father’s guidance.
This makes me think back on the times as a father that I would put one of my daughters on a high place and tell them to jump to me. They would jump freely because they trusted that I would catch them.
It is the same way with our heavenly Father. There are times He tells us to jump into His arms. It is at those times we must totally trust Him as we jump into His arms.
It is when the child starts to think that he knows more than the father that he gets himself in trouble. The wiser the child becomes...the more he realizes how much he doesn’t know and how much his father does know.
As a child we were dependent on our parents for all our needs.
The father doesn’t begrudge the son for asking him for food....or clothes....or a warm dry house. The father wants his son to look to him for his needs. No father would be pleased with a son who decided to eat grass, rather than ask his father for some food.
In truth, it would be an insult to the father if the son didn’t ask his father for his needs. It would also bring discredit to the father for others to think that he would not love his son enough to give him what he needed.
Another thing about dependence is in understanding the principle of waiting. A child learns to wait...he learns that he can’t have everything he wants...when he wants it.
He may not understand this, but sometimes he will not get what he want because the father has determined that it would not be best for him.
Many children have been injured in some way when they have decided to take things “into their own hands” and try to fulfill their own desires against the father’s advice.
2. A child is expected to be obedient.
A father expects his child to obey him immediately - without argument. Even if he may not fully understand.
A father expects a child to obey him without fussing, complaining, or murmuring.
A father expects the child to obey with respect for the father’s greater wisdom - even if that wisdom is not apparent or understood.
3. A child should submit his will to the will of the father.
The child knows that there is an order of submission and that he must submit for his own good. He also understands that the father will punish him if he refuses to submit.
Even though it displeases the father greatly, he will punish the child for trying to make himself equal with the father.
4. A child must grow.
He will grow slowly, at first. He will have to be fed and watched after for his every need.
Even if he doesn’t know that he has a need, the parent knows and will supply it for him.
As time goes on, the father expects that the the child will learn from the father and be able to do the right things on his own.
5.. The child will look like the father....act like the father.
He should imitate the father more and more as he grows. People will know what son belongs to what father by how the father and the son act.
6. . A little child would always want to know that his father was close by.
He would grieve if he thought that he was separated from his father.
This child’s security doesn’t come from knowing that we have a standing army or that the police are on duty. This child’s security and safety are directly linked to his father.
His peace of mind....comfort....and security are dependent upon his close relationship with his father.
Remember, if we don’t become as little children....we will not ENTER INTO THE
KINGDOM OF GOD!
Are you trusting God today with the faith of a child or are you trusting Him with doubt and skepticism? Are you willing to abandon yourself and jump into His arms and say "Daddy God, I am so dependent on you today?"
My prayer for each of you as you read this blog that you would realign yourself with God as a child that is so dependent on God that you will trust Him with the details of your life that He knows what is best for you.
4 Prayers Every Husband Needs to Pray over His Wife
by John UpChurch
You’ll never love your wife more than when you pray for her. Humbling yourself before an all-powerful God and asking Him to do what only He can in her life—that’s a level of intimacy beyond anything the world has to offer. Praying for her makes you realize how much of a treasure she is, the woman God gave you. You’re pouring yourself into her complete physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being.
Let these four prayers guide you as you cry out to God for her each day. (For wives, don’t miss these 5 powerful prayers to pray over your husband.)
Thank you, Father, for the gift of my wife. You are the giver of all good and perfect blessings, and I’m amazed how You show Your love through her. Please help me to cherish such an amazing gift (James 1:17).
Each day, circumstances and frustrations can easily steal the joy from ________. Please keep her from letting these challenges turn her focus from You, the author of her faith. Give her the joy that Jesus had as He accomplished the Father’s will on earth. May she consider each struggle as a reason to find hope in You (Hebrews 12:2–3; James 1:2–3).
When she feels tired, Lord, renew her strength. Surround her with friends who love You and will bear her burdens. Give her reason to feel refreshed by their encouragement (Isaiah 40:31; Galatians 6:2; Philemon 1:7).
May she know that the joy of the Lord is the source of her strength. Protect her from growing tired of doing what You’ve called her to do each day (Nehemiah 8:10; Galatians 6:9).
Father, You supply all our needs according to Your riches in Christ. I’m amazed that you care about us enough to meet our daily concerns and to notice every detail of our lives. Even the hairs of our heads are numbered because You take care of Your children (Philippians 4:19; Matthew 7:11, 10:30).
I confess that I sometimes think of myself as being the one who takes care of _______. Forgive me for taking to myself what truly belongs to you. Her help comes from You. If she depends on me, I know I’ll disappoint her. But You never fail, and You make her like a garden that always has enough water. You’re always faithful, always enough. Help her to know that You are all she needs (Psalm 121:2; Lamentations 3:22; Isaiah 58:11; John 14:8–9).
If she is tempted to look for comfort in anything else, may she instead realize how the power of Your Holy Spirit allows her to overflow with hope and peace. Nothing on this earth compares to the greatness of knowing You (Romans 15:13; Philippians 3:8).
You, God, are a shield around us. You protect us from the enemy who seeks to destroy, and you will not let us be put to shame. Your arm is mighty, and Your Word is powerful (Psalm 3:3, 12:7, 25:20; Exodus 15:9; Luke 1:51; Hebrews 1:3).
When the enemy attacks her, let her faith in You protect her so that she may stand her ground. Bring your Word to her mind so that she may turn aside his assaults and fight the good fight. Help her to remember that You give us the victory through Christ (Ephesians 6:10–18; 1 Timothy 6:12; 1 Corinthians 15:57).
You have conquered and disarmed the spiritual powers, and everything is in complete submission to You. Because of the cross, ______ is a new creation, and nothing can separate her from Your amazing, unfailing love (Colossians 2:15; 1 Peter 3:22; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Romans 8:38–39).
The enemy is defeated. You have crushed his head (Genesis 3:15).
Father, You loved us first—so much so that You sent Your Son to take our place. How incredible it is to think that while we were sinners, Christ died for us. Nothing we do could ever compare to the riches of Your grace (1 John 4:19; John 3:16; Romans 5:8; Ephesians 2:7).
Help ________ to grow first in her love for You. May she be increasingly in awe of Your power, beauty, and grace. May she know more each day about the depth and width of Your love and respond with increasing love of her own (Psalm 27:4; Ephesians 3:18).
Help her to love me through all my failures while I learn to love her as Christ loves the church. May we see each other as You see us, and may we enjoy fulfilling each other’s desires in our marriage (Ephesians 5:25; 1 Corinthians 7:2–4).
Please give her a growing love for others in all that she does. Show her how to be Christ’s ambassador in the world and to be a woman defined by love so that others may glorify You. Because of that love, may she share the gospel with everyone (2 Corinthians 5:20; Matthew 5:16; 1 Thessalonians 2:8).
“It’s not what goes into your mouth that defiles you; you are defiled by the words that come out of your mouth.”” Matthew 15:11 NLT
You have probably heard the expression "you are what you eat." A more precise saying is "You are what you speak."
The words that come from our mouth yield much greater power than we realize. They reveal the real you - what is really on your heart.
“The tongue can bring death or life; those who love to talk will reap the consequences.” Proverbs 18:21 NLT
If we realized the power of what comes from our mouth – we would be far more careful in choosing our words.
““A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit. A tree is identified by its fruit. Figs are never gathered from thornbushes, and grapes are not picked from bramble bushes. A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. What you say flows from what is in your heart.” Luke 6:43-45 NLT
The words that we speak are fruit and we are identified by that fruit. There are Christians today who gossip, slander, backbite and curse – this is not good fruit.
Jesus said in Matt 12: "we will give an account for every word we speak."
What comes out of your mouth, reveals the content of your heart.
It is a spiritual discipline to watch our words
“Watch your tongue and keep your mouth shut, and you will stay out of trouble.”Proverbs 21:23 NLT
“Those who control their tongue will have a long life; opening your mouth can ruin everything.” Proverbs 13:3 NLT
“Too much talk leads to sin. Be sensible and keep your mouth shut.” Proverbs 10:19 NLT
“A truly wise person uses few words; a person with understanding is even-tempered. Even fools are thought wise when they keep silent; with their mouths shut, they seem intelligent.” Proverbs 17:27-28 NLT
We've heard it said, "You are what you eat," but the more truthful saying is "You are what you speak."
Notice our scripture again...
It’s not what goes into your mouth that defiles you; you are defiled by the words that come out of your mouth.”” Matthew 15:11 NLT
It is not what goes into our flesh but what is in our heart that can damage us. It is what comes out of your mouth that yields your outcome.
In other words…
- Your declaration sets Your direction
- Your proclamation determines Your position
- Your speech releases Your success
- Your confession delivers Your conquest
- Your voice releases Your victory
- Your words produce Your wealth
There is a spiritual principle at work in our confession it is called sowing and reaping.
“Don’t be misled—you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant.”Galatians 6:7 NLT
- If you are sowing bitterness, don’t be upset that people are bitter toward you.
- If you are sowing selfishness, don’t be upset if people are selfish toward you.
- If you plant word seeds – don’t be surprised when they grow.
“For as he thinks in his heart, so is he. “Eat and drink!” he says to you, But his heart is not with you.” Proverbs 23:7 NKJV
We have to realize that what is coming out of our mouths is the abundance of our heart.
Garbage in – Garbage out!
“Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do.”
Joshua 1:8 NLT
If you want to guard your tongue – then get The Standard, The measuring stick, - God’s Word. Then ask Jesus to help you. Finally, ask the Holy Spirit of God to prick your heart every time something come out of your mouth that is not of the Him. May God help us all to have excellence of speech in all that we do.
“Then Jesus said, “Let’s go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile.” He said this because there were so many people coming and going that Jesus and his apostles didn’t even have time to eat.” Mark 6:31 NLT
I remember a very stressful time in my life that ended up with a hospital visit to deal with painful stomach problems. It turned out to be nothing serious, but I still remember the nurse asking me what my profession was. With embarrassment I acknowledged that I was a Christian pastor.
It was then that I started to learn the value of practicing daily, weekly and periodic Sabbath's for my body and soul.
I can't say that I always practiced Sabbath. In fact, often I ended up being forced into Sabbath rather than taking them before I needed to.
It has been said: We can worry or we can worship. Strangely enough, busy people find it a whole lot easier to worry than to worship.
Warren Wiersbe once said, “The ability to calm your soul and wait before God is one of the most difficult things in the Christian life. Our old nature is restless...the world around us is frantically in a hurry. But a restless heart usually leads to a reckless life.”
Rest. It’s a word we hear often enough, but do we really understand it’s importance in our lives? When I read through the Gospels I am impressed by the relaxed, calm pace Jesus kept from day to day. You never once see Jesus in a hurry. Even when one of Jesus’ closest friends, Lazarus, was on his deathbed, Jesus took His time getting to Bethany to be with Lazarus.
How is it that Jesus moved through life so slowly and yet accomplished so much? Is there something we contemporary Christians have missed? I am reminded of a story…
It seems there were two woodsmen. One day one woodsman challenged another to an all-day tree chopping contest. The challenger worked very hard, stopping only for a brief lunch break. The other man had a leisurely lunch and took several breaks during the day. At the end of the day, the challenger was surprised and annoyed to find that the other fellow had chopped substantially more wood than he had.
“I don’t get it,” he said. “Every time I checked, you were taking a rest, yet you chopped more wood than I did.”” But you didn’t notice,” said the winning woodsman, “that I was sharpening my ax when I sat down to rest.”
Mark 6:31: Then Jesus said, "Let’s get away from the crowds for a while and rest." There were so many people coming and going that Jesus and his apostles didn’t even have time to eat.
Rest is not only vital to our spiritual lives, it is imperative if we are to be effective. Christ understood this principle and made it a point to get away both with His disciples and by Himself from time to time in order to rest and rejuvenate.
It was Jesus way of “recharging” His spiritual, physical and emotional batteries. In doing so, He set an example for you and I to follow. We are a people too busy for our own good, too busy to stop and realize that in our frantic business we are actually accomplishing less and aging more.
According to a Greek legend, in ancient Athens a man noticed the great storyteller Aesop playing childish games with some little boys. He laughed and jeered at Aesop, asking him why he wasted his time in such frivolous activity.
Aesop responded by picking up a bow, loosening its string, and placing it on the ground. Then he said to the critical Athenian, “Now, answer the riddle, if you can. Tell us what the unstrung bows implies.” The man looked at it for several moments but had no idea what point Aesop was trying to make. Aesop explained, “If you keep a bow always bent, it will break eventually; but if you let it go slack, it will be more fit for use when you want it.”
People are also like that. That’s why we all need to take time to rest. In today’s Scripture, Jesus prescribed time off for His wearied disciples after they had returned from a prolonged period of ministry.
And in the Old Testament, God set a pattern for us when He “rested from all His work” (Gen. 2:3). Shouldn’t we take His example seriously?
Start by setting aside a special time to relax physically and renew yourself emotionally and spiritually. You will be at your best for the Lord if you have taken time to loosen the bow. It is important that you "come away and rest." You and the people you will associate with will thank you.
““Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a fishing net that was thrown into the water and caught fish of every kind. When the net was full, they dragged it up onto the shore, sat down, and sorted the good fish into crates, but threw the bad ones away. That is the way it will be at the end of the world. The angels will come and separate the wicked people from the righteous, throwing the wicked into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Matthew 13:47-50 NLT
To speak about hell is not very popular. It never has been nor will it ever be in the future. But it is necessary.
Ted Turner, founder of Turner Broadcasting blasted the Christian faith at a speech to the National Press Club. He said, "Remember, heaven is going to be perfect. And I don’t really want to be there. Those of us that go to hell, which will be most of us in this room, most journalists are certainly going there. But when we get there we’ll have a chance to make things better because hell is supposed to be a mess. And heaven is perfect. Who wants to go to a place that is perfect? Boring, boring."
Also in late 1989, Turner told Dallas Morning News that "Christianity is a religion for losers." Christ died on the cross, but Turner said He shouldn’t have bothered. "I don’t want anybody dying for me. I’ve had a few drinks and a few girlfriends and if that’s gonna put me in hell, then so be it."
Ted Turner, you may be smart when it comes to the world and making money, but you are not a smart man when it comes to the reality of eternity.
On July 16, 1741, Jonathan Edwards stood before his congregation and preached a message titled, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God. People began to shake under the conviction of their sins. Some fell to the floor, crying out for mercy. That morning, his church encountered God and the Great Awakening began to sweep across New England.
It’s quite different in most pulpits today. In one article for Newsweek Kenneth Woodward wrote, "Churchgoers take comfort: hell has all but disappeared from modern Christian theology. But this comes at a price."
Another preacher wrote, “Hell, it would seem, has fallen on rather lean times. It used to be that the vast majority of Christians, regardless of denominational affiliation, believed that Hell was a real place where the wicked and the impenitent go when they died. The very thought of the pains and torments of Hell was enough to scare sinners straight. It used to be that ministers of the Gospel would preach on the horrors of Hell to persuade reprobates to repentance. But not anymore. Most American mainline and so-called Evangelical churches stopped preaching about Hell years ago. Most mainline ministers stopped believing in Hell years before that. Hell made people uncomfortable. Hell was too ‘old-fashioned.’ The topic of Hell was bad for the bottom line—attendance and income….”
Our passage today draws a picture of a fishing net that drags all sorts of fish in - good and bad. They were divided and the bad was thrown away.
Some fish and some things in life are not worth much. Perhaps not even worth saving for anyone. They are fit only to be culled and thrown away. And so shall it be in hell.
But the problem is many people just don’t get it. They just don’t understand this eternal, Biblical truth of God. To avoid hell WE MUST UNDERSTAND GOD’S WORD!
Bill Hybels, the pastor of Willow Creek Church in Chicago which has over 20,000 people in attendance each week, tells the story of an encounter he had with a young woman.
He said, “I recall one time being in a restaurant studying for a message, and a gal looked over from her table and saw me reading my Bible. She said, ‘Why do you study that stuff?’ And I thought, just to stimulate a little discussion, I’d try to knock her off balance. So I said, ‘Because I don’t feel like going to hell when I die.’
“I was going to be really blunt, but I took the edge off it a little bit. And she said, ‘There is no such thing as heaven or hell.’ I thought, Well, I got something going now.
“So I turned in my chair and I said, ‘Why do you say that?’ She said, ‘Everybody knows that when you die your candle goes out — poof ’ I said, ‘You mean to tell me there’s no afterlife?’ ‘No.’ ‘So that means you must be able to just live as you please?’ ‘That’s right.’ ‘Like, there’s no Judgment Day or anything?’ ‘No.’
“I said, ‘Well, that’s fascinating to me. Where did you hear that?’ She said, ‘I read it somewhere.’‘Can you give me the name of the book?’ ‘I don’t recall.’ ‘Can you give me the name of the author of the book?’ ‘I forget his name.’ ‘Did that author write any other books?’ ‘I don’t know.’ ‘Is it possible that your author changed his mind two years after he wrote this particular book and then wrote another one that said there is a heaven and a hell? Is that possible?’ ‘It’s possible but not likely.’
“‘All right,’ I said. ‘Let me get this straight. You are rolling the dice on your eternity predicated on what someone you don’t even know wrote in a book you can’t even recall the title of. Have I got that straight?’
“I was playing a little Columbo act with her. She looked me right in the eye and said, ‘That’s right.’ And I said back to her, ‘You know what I think, sweetheart? I think you have merely created a belief that guarantees the continuation of your unencumbered lifestyle. I think you made it up, because it is very discomforting to think of a heaven. It is a very discomforting thought to think of a hell. It is very unnerving to face a holy God in the day of reckoning. I think you made it all up.’ We had quite a conversation after that.”
Like the young woman in Hybel’s story, many people today don’t want to believe in hell, because they do not want to change the way they live. They easily accept anything that smacks of doubt, because it gives them relief from thinking about the reality of eternity. But Jesus wanted people to think about eternity often. In fact, the Bible is almost silent about the subject of hell, except for the words of Jesus. This only makes sense, because we would expect that the One who came from eternity would know and talk about eternity more than anyone else.
Revelation 21:8 “But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars — their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”
There are multitudes of people who have preconceived ideas about hell or no ideas at all. But in order to avoid hell people need to understand God’s will. And the only place to get that understanding is in God’s Word.
As someone said, “Read the Bible. It will scare hell out of you.” Or will hopefully, scare a person enough to keep them out of hell.
TO AVOID HELL WE MUST LISTEN TO AND UNDERSTAND GOD’S MESSAGE. We need to listen and listen well!
A preacher in the Midwest tells about a young couple in his church who boasted to all their friends and neighbors that they were flying to New York City. They were only going to be able to spend one day there, but the highlight of their trip would be to go see the Broadway play, “My Fair Lady.” They were so proud of this and everyone was really impressed because no one else in that small town had ever been to a play on Broadway.
The day came and when they arrived in New York they took a taxi to the theater where “My Fair Lady” was playing. To their dismay, they found that the play was sold out for the night.
They thought, “What do we do now? Everybody knows that we came to see ‘My Fair Lady.’ We don’t dare tell them that we didn’t.” So they found a couple of ticket stubs on the sidewalk and picked them up. They bought a program that described the various acts of the play. They went home singing “I Could Have Danced all Night.” And they told everybody that they had gone to see “My Fair Lady.”
The preacher said, “That’s right. They had the ticket stubs. They had the program. They had been to the theater. They knew the music. But the trouble is, they didn’t see the performance.”
Many people today are like that. They may go to church occasionally. They may sing the songs, bow their heads and perhaps even give some money, but they never really believed and trusted Christ for their salvation. It was just an act.
Matthew 7:21 “Not everyone who says to me, ’Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”
If you are not sure, you need to make sure. You need to put your trust in Christ and in Christ alone. It is the only way to heaven. It is the only way to escape hell.
That is something to think about as you go about your life today.
“Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”” Matthew 11:28-30 NLT
We all have burdens. Some have a physical handicap, chronic sickness, or some abnormality you cannot change.
Some have spiritual burdens. It may be that “Hurricane Satan” has struck your life and the surge of sin has soaked your soul, and now you are suffering spiritual consequences.
Some have emotional burdens like depression or anxiety, a heartache over some loss, or a financial reversal.
I once heard of a Chinese woman lost her dear son and could not find comfort. She went to wise old man and asked what to do. He said “go to a home that has no sorrow or grief, and bring back a mustard seed, and I will restore your son." Several days went by, and she returned and said, “I have been so selfish in my grief…sorrow is common to every home.”
We all have problems and cares, and they weigh down upon us like a burden on the back.
We don’t all have wealth, but we all have burdens…
Every day of life here on earth brings to us it’s own assortment of burdens, and we will be blessed to study God’s answer to the question, “What do I do with my burdens?”
1. Some burdens are meant to be shared [by others]
Sorrows. Failures. Grief. Disappointment. These things will eventually visit the house of every person on earth.
One of the reasons that God allows sorrows to come to us…so we can be comforted, and then in turn comfort others in need once we’ve been thru it.
“He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.” 2 Corinthians 1:4 NLT
Let’s not wallow in self-pity and allow our tragedies to be wasted…God wants to use them for good in others. Many of you have been thru things that uniquely qualify you to help others I cannot help!
2. Some burdens are meant to be shouldered [alone]
The consequences of your sin is something you have to shoulder yourself.
We live in a day and time in which people want to sin and ignore the consequences [avoid them]. People want to blame others and pass the buck. They don't want to be accountable for their sins.
The reality is this: You can choose to sin but you can choose the consequences! We have a free will, and so does God when He reads our meter!
Everyone reading this today will someday stand before God…alone! I cannot stand with you and no one with me. Your parents won’t be beside you or your attorney. We will all have to give an account.
3. Some burdens are meant to be shed
“Give your burdens to the LORD, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall.”Psalms 55:22 NLT
Jesus is our great burden bearer. Sometimes we cling to a burden and try to carry it ourselves. We can be deceived into thinking God wants us to carry something by ourselves as if we are somehow serving God by doing so…but some burdens He wants to carry for us, if we’ll let Him.
When it’s more than you can bear and you don’t think you can take another step, you can lay it on Jesus.
For some reason, sometimes we feel like we can make it ourselves. But there are times when we need to let go and let God!
One of these two things will happen when we cast our burden on the Lord:
-The Lord will lift the burden
I’ve seen people have a health need, and they pray, and it goes away. They have a financial need…and God provides the money.
It’s always great when that’s how it happens. But that’s not always how God works…
Look again at Ps. 55:22 which says, “and He take care of you.”
It doesn't promise that God will take away the burden but it does promise that will take care of you or "sustain" you.
- God will pick you up and carry you. "He will not permit the godly to slip or fall."
Paul prayed 3x's for God to take away the burden and each time God reminded him that He would give him the grace to go through this.
Some of you are getting bitter toward God because you’ve asked Him to lift your burden and it doesn’t seem that He has…but please realize it may be His will to lift you up, and carry you and that burden through it all. But when we throw a perpetual pity party we don’t allow Him to carry us or the burden either!
I love the old chorus - “I must tell Jesus, all of my trials, I cannot bear these burdens alone in my distress He kindly will help me, He ever loves and cares for His own.”
Whatever burden you might have today can be put under the blood and protection of Jesus Christ. He says, "...For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”
““Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to com." Matthew 12:31-32 NKJV
There are a lot of scriptures verses on sin in the Bible but this one in particular has a haunting overtone to it - it is about the one sin that is unforgivable.
The scene that precedes these words of Jesus in Matthew 12 is this: A man who was both blind and mute has just been healed. Matthew tells us that this man was possessed by a demon, and that Jesus ordered the demon out of him. Once the demon left, then the man was able to see and speak.
It should have been a moment of great rejoicing, because the man could see the faces of loved ones and friends. He could see the beauties of nature, and he could communicate with people for perhaps the first time in his life.
But it was not a time of rejoicing for everyone. Hard-hearted Pharisees were upset by what Jesus had done. They could not deny His miracle, but they could attempt to explain it away. So they said, "It is only by Beelzebub, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons" (Matthew 12:24).
Jesus responds to them by stating that He and Satan have nothing in common with one another and that He is the stronger of the two.
It is then that Jesus talks about the one sin that is unforgivable - that of sinning against the Holy Spirit.
I hear it often from people - "I have committed the unpardonable sin." What exactly does that mean?
Before we can answer that question correctly, we need to know the responsibilities that God has given to the Holy Spirit today.
Listen to this promise that Jesus made in John 14:16-17, "I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Counselor to be with you forever - the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him . . ."
Notice that word, "Counselor." In some translations you’ll find the word "Comforter" instead. The Greek word here is "paraclete" and it means "one who stands alongside."
In the Greek courts a "paraclete" was a witness who came to testify in your defense. Your lawyer, your defense attorney who used all his ability to speak on your behalf was also called a "paraclete."
The Bible tells us that the Holy Spirit comforts us in time of trouble or sorrow; He helps us to overcome temptations and to live the way we ought; He educates our conscience; He helps us to pray as we ought; and He bears witness to God on our behalf that we are children of God.
Jesus also said two other very important things about the Holy Spirit in John 14:16-17. Did you notice them? He promised that the Holy Spirit would be with us forever, and also said that the Holy Spirit would not be known or received by everyone - but just by those who are Christians.
The Holy Spirit is God’s final contact, God’s last attempt to reach man and save him from sin. The Holy Spirit is God’s agent in the world today showing us the great love of God & offering us His salvation.
To the Christian, the Holy Spirit is God’s great Helper - helping us where we are weak, lifting us up when we fall, comforting us in trouble or sorrow, guiding us in the way we ought to go, and standing alongside us as a witness for our defense before God on that great judgment day.
At the time that Jesus was speaking, the Jews had their own teachings about the Holy Spirit. According to Jewish teaching the Holy Spirit had two supreme functions.
First, the Holy Spirit brought God’s truth to men; the Holy Spirit was God’s instrument in helping us come to know God’s will for us.
Second, the Holy Spirit enabled men to recognize and understand God’s truth when they saw it; the Holy Spirit works upon the heart & minds of men.
Therefore, man needs the Holy Spirit both to receive and to recognize God’s truth. To put it another way, the Holy Spirit is working on us to cause us to believe in Jesus Christ, and to bring us to accept Him as our Savior & Lord.
But we dare not forget a very important principle of life, "What you don’t use, you lose." This principle is true in almost every area of life.
1. It is true physically. If we cease to use & exercise certain muscles, they will weaken and become unusable.
2. It is true mentally. Most of us learned things in school that we have since completely forgotten - because we haven’t used them in years. Maybe it was a foreign language - or how to play a musical instrument. The knowledge we once had has long since gone because we did not exercise and make use of it.
3. It is true morally. We can lose the ability to enjoy good clean fun - if we spend long enough in seeking our pleasure among those things which are soiled & degraded. What we see and hear, & with what kind of people & pleasures we indulge ourselves can really be a matter of life & death.
We can also lose the ability to be moved or changed by God’s goodness and truth when the Holy Spirit presents it to us.
If we consistently shut our eyes and ears to God’s way, and insist on our own way; If we continually refuse to listen to the guidance God’s word offers to us, & turn our backs upon the messages which the Holy Spirit brings; if we continue to prefer our own ideas to the ideas that God is seeking to put into our heart and mind; then in the end we will come to the stage where nothing the Holy Spirit seeks to do will move or change us in any way.
But why should that sin be unforgivable? What makes it so much worse than all other sins? The answer is simple. When someone reaches that stage, repentance becomes impossible.
1. If we cannot recognize good when we see it, we can’t desire the good.
2. If we do not recognize evil as being evil, we can’t be sorry for it, and hate it, and wish to change for the better.
3. If we cannot love the good and hate the evil, then we can’t repent; and if we do not repent, we cannot be forgiven, because repentance is a vital condition for forgiveness.
It was to that stage that the Pharisees had come. They had so long been deliberately blind and deaf to God that they had lost the ability to recognize God when they were confronted by Him.
It was not God who had shut them out; they had shut themselves out, for years of resistance to God had made them what they were. They stopped hearing God and they resisted who God was.
There is a story of a farmer who was in the office of a city friend, with the roar of the traffic coming through the windows. Suddenly the farmer said, "Listen!" "What is it?" asked the city man. "A grasshopper," said the farmer.
Years of listening to country sounds had attuned his ears to country sounds, sounds that a city man’s ear did not hear at all.
On the other hand, let a coin drop, and a banker will hear it immediately, while the farmer might not hear it at all.
Only the expert, the man who has made himself able to hear it, will pick out the note of each individual bird in the chorus of sounds.
Only the expert, the man who has made himself able to hear it, will distinguish the different instruments in the orchestra.
It is the law of life that we hear what we have trained ourselves to hear. Day by day we must listen to God’s word, so that God’s voice may become, not fainter and fainter until we cannot hear it at all, but clearer and clearer until it becomes the one sound to which our ears are attuned.
We must train ourselves to be "listeners of God" - attuned to the Holy Spirit on a daily basis.
So what is the greatest sin of all - it is the sin of resistance to God. It is not hearing His direction for our lives. It resisting His voice and it is refusing to follow His will. We must all pray for pliable and softened hearts. We must yield ourselves totally to God's leading and presence. It is only then that we won't commit the worst sin of all.
