Excuse Me God, Can We Talk?

Posted by David on February 9, 1997 under Sermons

Christians are constantly challenged to remember that God is not human. God is not the perfect human, or the perfectly developed human, or the human with all supernatural powers. You might say, “I never think God is human.”

Do you believe that God thinks like you think? Do you believe in spiritual matters that you and God stand together on identical positions? Do you believe that your religious convictions and your spiritual perspectives thrill God because He looks at everything just as you do? When we believe that God thinks our thoughts, as we all do in at least some matters, we are humanizing God.

God is totally unlike us in every consideration. He is so different, it defies comprehension. Let me give you an example.

1. Think for a moment about three questions.
   1. The three questions:
      1. Who do you enjoy listening to? These are the people it takes no effort to listen to–it is a pleasure, a joy to have opportunity to listen to these people.
      2. Who are you willing to listen to? It is not a bad experience to listen to these people, but neither is it a thrilling experience.
      3. Who can you listen to? It takes effort to listen to these people, but you can make yourself listen.
   2. Let’s think about the answers to those three questions. (In each of these questions I am talking about listening by choice, listening you choose to do.)
      1. Question one: To whom do you enjoy listening?
         1. You enjoy listening to people who reflect your educational level.
            1. I am not talking about people who hold similar scholastic degrees to yours.
            2. I am talking about people who easily “connect” with your thinking and your perspectives because you share similar levels of knowledge and experience.
            3. That person’s thinking stimulates your thinking.
            4. Their thoughts and understanding challenge you without threatening you.
            5. You can share and discuss things with this person that you cannot discuss with just anyone.
            6. Typically, all of us truly enjoy listening to such a person.
      2. Question two: To whom are you willing to listen?
         1. Most of us are willing to listen to anyone who does not:
            1. Bore us.
            2. Insult us.
            3. Attack us.
            4. Address us with contempt.
         2. We generally are willing to listen to anyone who has a decent attitude and treats us respectfully.
      3. Question three: To whom can you listen?
         1. You can listen to virtually anyone that you can understand.
            1. Most of the time, we can choose to listen to anyone who is intelligible.
            2. If we can follow the person’s thoughts, we can choose to listen to the person.
         2. That also means there are some persons that we cannot listen to even if we choose to try to hear and understand.
            1. There are some who have such a level of ignorance that you cannot understand them.
            2. In no way do I mean that as a condescending statement.
            3. For example, those of you who are professional or possess specialized skills:
               1. You encounter people who want to discuss your area of knowledge and experience, but they simply do not know what they are talking about.
               2. They are certain that they know what they are talking about, but they don’t.
               3. Because they have too little knowledge, you cannot follow what they say or respond to their comments.
               4. You might courteously allow them to talk, but you cannot listen to them.
            4. A second example of people you cannot listen to are people who “get on your nerves.”
               1. You have an involuntary emotional reaction when this person speaks.
               2. Your feelings declare that you actually cannot endure listening to what they have to say–just listening to their voice is distressful.
               3. Everything within you shouts that you must get away from this person.
   3. In contrast to these very common human reactions, consider God: to whom can God listen?
      1. God can and will listen to anyone.
      2. God can and will listen to anyone who speaks honestly and openly to Him from the heart.
2. Maybe your first reaction is skeptical, or perhaps you disagree that God can and will listen to anyone who speaks openly and honestly from the heart.
   1. If you disagree, you might disagree on the basis of a statement found in John 9:31: We know that God does not hear sinners.
   2. Please take a Bible and turn with me to John 9, and follow me as we look at the context of this statement.
      1. Jesus and his disciples walked past a man who was born blind.
         1. From the moment of birth he had never seen.
         2. Today, we understand that this man was probably blind before birth.
      2. The disciples asked Jesus a common, important theological question of that day–a question that was often discussed in concern.
      3. The question: Is this man blind because he sinned or because his parents sinned?
      4. First, let’s use the scripture to understand the background of this question.
         1. In all of God’s interaction with the nation of Israel, God’s primary means for blessing these people in all generations was prosperity and physical well being–remember such men as Abraham, Job, and David.
         2. God’s promises to Israel as a nation and to individuals was peace and prosperity if they obeyed Him.
         3. Look at Deuteronomy 28.
            1. Verse 1–If you obey Me and keep My commandments:
            2. Verse 3–I will bless your cities and your rural areas.
            3. Verse 4–You will have many children, and your livestock will reproduce.
            4. Verse 5–I will bless you with food.
            5. Verse 6–You will go and come in prosperity.
            6. Verse 7–I will defeat your enemies and cause them to be afraid of you.
            7. Verse 8–I will fill your barns and bless all your work.
            8. Verse 11–I will make you very prosperous.
            9. Verse 12–I will give you wonderful growing seasons for your crops.
            10. Verses l, 9, 13, 14 state the basis for blessings–this is how I will bless you if you obey Me, keep My commandments, and refuse to reject Me.
         4. Verses 15-68 state the terrible things that will happen if they do not obey Him and keep His commandments. Among those terrible things are:
            1. Verse 22–You will have fever and swelling.
            2. Verse 27–You will have boils, tumors, scabs, and itch.
            3. Verse 28–You will suffer madness, blindness, and a confused mind.
         5. This is the teaching of Moses, of the law of Moses, of the absolute spiritual authority for the Jewish people.
            1. Also remember that in the Old Testament the concept of heaven and hell had not been revealed.
            2. Prior to Jesus, it was beginning to emerge, but those concepts came to full revelation after Jesus’ death.
      5. Now turn back to John 9.
      6. This man was an interesting case.
         1. He was born blind.
         2. Someone had not kept God’s commandments.
         3. Had his parents sinned, or had he sinned?
      7. Jesus said in this case neither sinned; the man was born blind so God could display His power.
         1. In verse 6 Jesus spit on the ground, made a mud paste, covered the blind man’s eyes with the mud paste, and told him to go wash it off in the pool of Siloam.
         2. The man did, and he returned with his sight–and that caused quite a stir.
         3. The neighbors began questioning: “Isn’t this the blind beggar?” Some said, “No, he just looks like him;” some said, “Yes, it is him;” he was constantly telling them, “I’m the man.”
         4. “Well, explain how you can see.”
         5. He told them what Jesus did.
         6. “Where is that man?” “I don’t know.”
      8. Probably because the miracle was performed on the Sabbath day, the day when the religious law forbid anyone to work, they took the man to the Pharisees.
         1. The law of Moses strictly forbid working on the Sabbath, and the Pharisees regard a miracle of this type to be work.
         2. When the Pharisees heard what had happened, some of them said, “The man who did this is not from God because he violated the Sabbath.”
         3. Others disagreed, “If he were not from God, how do you explain his power to do this?”
         4. They asked the blind man, “What do you say about this man Jesus?” He replied, “He’s a prophet.”
         5. The Pharisees decided it was a hoax; the man never was blind; so they called his parents.
         6. The parents were terrified because everyone knew that the Pharisees would expel anyone from the synagogue who said Jesus was the Christ–and that would create a major difficulty for the person.
         7. The Pharisees asked them if this man was their son, and, if so, explain how he could see.
         8. They replied that it was their son, but they could not explain how he gained his sight; “Ask him; he is an adult.”
         9. So the Pharisees questioned the man again, and began by declaring, “We know Jesus is a sinner. Give God the glory for what happened. And tell us again how it happened.”
         10. The man was now irritated: “I told you, and you would not listen. Are you considering being Jesus’ disciples?”
         11. Tension was high. “You follow Jesus; we follow Moses; we don’t know where this man came from.”
         12. “That is astounding! The man gave me my sight, and you don’t know where he came from. We, you and I, know that God does not listen to the request of sinners; the very fact that Jesus had this power is proof that he reverences God and does God’s will. Never in history has a person who was born blind gained his sight. If Jesus were not from God, he could not do this.”
         13. Now the Pharisees are really angry: “You were born in sin, and you dare to try to teach us?” (Oh, the arrogance of self-righteousness!) They threw him out of the synagogue.
      9. Jesus heard what happened and found the man.
         1. He asked the man, “Do you believe in God’s son?”
         2. The man said, “I would if I knew who he was.”
         3. Jesus said, “You are looking at him and listening to him.”
         4. The man declared, “I believe!” and worshipped Jesus.
   3. Consider the context:
      1. Who made the statement, “We know that God does not hear sinners”? The man who received his sight.
      2. Was he speaking from inspiration when he made the statement? No, he was not speaking from inspiration.
      3. Was he making a theological statement or declaring a doctrinal position? No, he was making an observation based on the evidence.
      4. What was his point? He was stating the obvious to the Pharisees: they could not discredit the miracle or the power of Jesus by saying Jesus was a sinner.
      5. Did the man know who Jesus was when he made this statement? No.
3. That statement does not deny that anyone who speaks to God openly, honestly, and from the heart will be heard.
   1. I want you to think about something astounding, too incredible to comprehend.
      1. God can and will listen to the prayers of:
         1. The most primitive people on earth who do not even have a written language, and to the most sophisticated people on earth who are patrons of the arts.
         2. The most uneducated people on earth, who are illiterate and never had opportunity for one day of education, and to the most educated people in our world.
      2. No one is too primitive for God to hear, and no one is too advanced for God to hear.
         1. All are beneath God, but it does not matter.
         2. All are sinful, but it does not matter.
         3. No one is too ignorant, too boring, or “gets on God’s nerves.”
      3. He listens to people you and I can’t and won’t listen to.

“Thank You, God, for Your willingness to listen. Thank You for hearing all people. Forgive us for not listening as You listen. Thank You for being the God who loves the world, who loves all humanity, who wants to extend Your grace and Your forgiveness to every single individual on earth.”

I urge you to learn how to pray as you have never prayed before. I urge you to pray in the full understanding that you are talking to the God who listens.

Even the Strong Are Weak

Posted by David on under Sermons

This week I have been grieved at heart. My heart grief does not come from any personal tragedies. Personally, it has been a week rich with blessings. The heart grief comes from knowing what is happening in the lives of some Christian friends. It arises from seeing what continues to happen in our society. It arises from seeing how desperately people need help.

A Christian friend called me this week. After spending most of his life as an agnostic, he was converted about two years ago. He has an exception mind, a hungry mind. He reads two or three books at once, and he reads thought provoking material. It has only been in the last couple of years that he has learned how to read the Bible in a way that produces understanding.

Recently he was in a Bible class that discussed 2 Corinthians 5:10. “We must all appear before Christ’s judgment seat. We will be rewarded according the to deeds we have done in the body.” That verse ran over him like a huge truck loaded with bricks. He consumed with thoughts of accountability without any awareness of forgiveness. That thinking helped plunge him into deep darkness. He could not stop thinking about all the terrible things he had done in the past. He concluded that God could not possibly love a person like him.

In my friend’s mind there are two kinds of people: good people and bad people. Good people are strong. Bad people are weak. For the bad who are weak, it is hopeless.

Though he probably does not know where he got that idea, I am confident it was formed by some church or religious group in his past. That perception of strength and weakness threatens to devour him.

1. We must allow the New Testament to create our perceptions about strength and weakness.
   1. If I asked you to nominate someone in the New Testament that you regard to be a truly strong Christian, who would you nominate?
      1. Take a moment–think of a specific person that you would nominate.
      2. I am sure several people would be nominated, but I think two persons would be nominated more than anyone else.
      3. I think Paul and Peter would receive the majority of our nominations.
      4. From the typical criteria that we use to define spiritual strength, both of these men were exceptionally strong Christians.
      5. While I could use either man to share something that I want you to see, let me use Peter to illustrate the fact that even the spiritually strong are weak.
   2. As one of the twelve disciples, Peter’s strengths were impressive.
      1. He literally walked off his job and left his means of financial support to follow Jesus (Mark 1:16-18).
      2. After he became Jesus’ disciple, Jesus gave him a new name (John 1:42).
         1. He named him Cephas (Aramaic) or Petros (Greek) or Peter (English) which means “rock.”
         2. Jesus renamed Peter–Jesus called him “rock.”
      3. Peter’s credentials as one of Jesus’ twelve special disciples is impressive.
         1. He was of the first disciples that Jesus called (Mark 1:16-18).
         2. His name always is the first name to appear in the listing of the twelve disciples.
         3. Commonly he was the spokesman for the twelve.
         4. He was one of three disciples who formed an inner circle, one of the three closest to Jesus.
            1. Only these three saw the act of Jesus raising Jarius’ daughter from the dead (Mark 5:37).
            2. Only these three saw Jesus change from his physical body to his spiritual body (Mark 9:2).
            3. -Only these three were invited to go with Jesus into the garden where he prayed just before he was arrested (Mark 14:33)–they were the only persons Jesus had near him when he was deeply troubled.
            4. Always, Peter was one of the three.
   3. Jesus made a promise to Peter that he made to no one else–Peter and only Peter received this promise in Matthew 16:13-20.
      1. Jesus asked all twelve the same question: “Who are people saying that I am?”
      2. All them answered.
      3. He asked all twelve again, “Who do you say that I am?”
      4. This time only Peter answered: “You are the Christ, the Son of God.”
      5. Jesus replied, “You are blessed, Peter. God has revealed this to you. I will build my church upon this truth that you understand. Death will not prevent me from building it. And I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven.”
      6. Peter would be the person who opened the church to people, who opened the gates that permitted people to be citizens in God’s kingdom.
      7. He promised Peter, and later the rest of the twelve (Matthew 18:18), that whatever they bound or loosed in the kingdom would be bound or loosed in heaven.
   4. Peter’s devotion to Jesus could hardly be exaggerated.
      1. Only Peter dared to climb out of a boat and walk on a stormy sea because Jesus told him that he could do it (Matthew 14:29).
      2. It was Peter who said, “If everyone falls, I will not fall” (Mark 14:29)
      3. It was Peter who tried to defended Jesus against as many as 600 soldiers who came to arrest Jesus (John 18:10).
      4. Peter was loyal, committed, and determined.
   5. On the night Jesus was betrayed and arrested, Peter confronted his weakness.
      1. He would have gladly died for Jesus defending him with that sword, but he had to die his way, not Jesus’ way.
      2. When Peter put down the sword, he moved away in the darkness, and followed the arrest party from a distance (Luke 22:54).
      3. He then quietly appeared at the Jewish trials of Jesus, but just being there soon put him in the spotlight, and he denied that he knew Jesus, not once, but three times.
      4. After his third denial, the roster crowed, just as Jesus had predicted, and Jesus looked at him, and Peter fled into the night weeping (Luke 22:61,62).
      5. The first forty days after Jesus’ death was a horrible period for Peter.
      6. Perhaps the worst moment was when Jesus appeared and asked Peter three times if Peter loved him (John 21:15-17).
   6. Then Peter recovered and became stronger, wiser, and more mature.
      1. He assumed leadership of the disciples again and took the lead in appointing someone to take Judas’ place (Acts 1:15)
      2. On Pentecost, as the leader, he became the principal speaker who opened God’s kingdom to the Jewish people (Acts 2:14).
      3. From that day and that moment, the strong Peter exploded on the scene in Jerusalem.
         1. He healed a lame man at the temple (Acts 3:4).
         2. He and John were arrested, and he told the highest court in Israel, “There is salvation in no one else…” (Acts 4:8,12).
         3. He confronted the Christians, Ananias and Sapphira, for lying to the God, and they died instantly (Act 5:1-11).
         4. He was so respected that people lined the streets with the sick in the hope that Peter would pass by and his shadow would fall on the sick and heal them (Acts 5:15).
         5. When all the apostles were arrested, Peter told the same court, “We must obey God instead of man” (Acts 5:29).
         6. When the church sent Peter and John to Samaria, the Christian Simon tried to buy the power of the Holy Spirit, and Peter condemned him to his face (Acts 8:20).
         7. In Joppa Peter raised the Christian woman Dorcas from the dead (Acts 9:39-41).
         8. The stronger-than-ever Peter seemed to be untouchable in the city of Jerusalem.
      4. Then events were set into motion by a command from the Lord that again would bring Peter face to face with his weakness.
         1. The Lord sent Peter to Cesarea to open the kingdom of God to non-Jews, and he did–he taught and baptized people who were not Jews (Acts 10).
         2. Though he did what the Lord told him to do, the Christians in Jerusalem strongly disapproved, and they confronted him when he returned (Acts 11:2).
         3. He finally proved that the Lord approved of what he did, but things were never the same–he is not mentioned again in a leadership capacity in the church in Jerusalem.
         4. In fact, some time after that, the untouchable Peter was arrested and put in jail to await execution by the government–only the intervention of the Lord saved his life (Acts 12).
      5. All of this had a powerful, painful impact on Peter.
         1. Later he was visiting the non-Jewish congregation in Antioch of Syria (Galatians 2:11-14).
         2. When he first arrived, he was fellowshipping non-Jewish Christians freely and openly.
         3. Then a group from the Jerusalem congregation came, and Peter was afraid of them.
         4. So, in his fear, he broke fellowship with the non-Jewish Christians and even was successful in influencing Barnabas to do the same.
         5. Paul confronted Peter publicly to his face and declared, “This is wrong!”
         6. And Peter stared straight into the eyes of his weakness again.

It Just Is Not Fair!

Posted by David on under Bulletin Articles

The injustices of life often flood our worlds like a torrential cloudburst that refuses to stop. A person whose faith builds a beautiful life falls prey to an unthinkable disease. A person whose generous heart willingly shares “the shirt off his back” is tossed on the reefs of economic calamity. A person of compassion who always helps victims of tragedy is victimized by tragedy. A person whose life is guided by positive attitudes and a refreshing spirit dies much “before her time.” It is not fair!

Life’s unfairness has been a constant in earthly existence since Adam blamed God and Eve for his failure. The unfairness of injustice never skips a generation–Cain did kill Abel. The Bible is a documentary on the realities of injustice. To the extent that evil prospers, the unfairness of injustice abounds.

Christians commonly assume that Christianity “makes everything fair.” Some see “fairness” as a benefit of Christianity, some see it as a goal, and some see it as Christianity’s purpose. It is true that fairness blossoms in the lives of the godly. As we learn to treat others as we want to be treated, those blossoms mature to ripe fruit. Still, the unfairness of injustice is an unremovable constant in everything touched by evil. Everywhere evil exerts influence, the unfairness of injustice thrives. When we conclude (because we belong to Christ) that we will not experience the unfairness of injustice, we are prepared to be disillusioned. We can conclude that so easily! When disillusionment occurs, we are outraged.

Unfortunately, the unfairness of injustice often blinds us to the unfairness of salvation. Forgiveness is unfair. So is mercy. And so are compassion, kindness, and forbearance. All of them are based on undeserved consideration. All are built on the preferential treatment of love. None of them concern themselves with what we deserve; they concern themselves only with the noblest expressions of love.

Evil and its consequences are so unfair! In that unfairness is pain, grief, and destruction. God and the consequences of His mercy are so unfair! In that unfairness is peace, joy, hope, and salvation. Thank you, God, for being unfair, for it is in your unfairness that I find love and salvation. Please, God, help us understand how to be unfair as are you, not as is this world.

How Should I Interpret Forbearance?

Posted by David on February 2, 1997 under Sermons

The last three Sunday evenings we have examined forbearance. Those three lessons are the background for our study tonight.

Obviously, the important question is this: how am I as a Christian to interpret the responsibility to be forbearing? What are the appropriate understandings and practices of forbearance?

1. To establish the context to answer those questions, I want to make a concise review of the first three lessons.
   1. We defined forbearance.
      1. To forbear is “to hold oneself back.”
      2. It is to “restrain oneself.”
      3. Commonly, God’s forbearance is seen in His restraining His wrath.
   2. In lesson one, we learned that forbearance is a part of God’s divine nature, one defining aspect of who God is and how God acts.
      1. Romans 2:4 stressed the urgency of understanding the riches of God’s kindness, forbearance, and patience.
      2. Romans 3:21-25 revealed how God’s forbearance created the means of and opportunity for salvation.
      3. 2 Peter 3:9 provides an incredible insight into God’s forbearance: He is delaying the return of Jesus because He in the hope that all will come to repentance and no one will be destroyed.
   3. In lesson two, we observed God’s forbearance at work in the congregation at Corinth.
      1. This troubled congregation had:
         1. A destructive division problem (1:11-17).
         2. Sexual immorality problems (5:1-13).
         3. Terrible relationship problems (6:1-11).
         4. Conviction/conscience problems (chapter 8).
         5. Cultural problems (11:1-16).
         6. Demeaning fellowship problems (11:17-34).
         7. Worship problems (chapter 14).
         8. Doctrinal problems (chapter 15).
      2. In spite of these problems, Paul:
         1. Called them brethren 21 times.
         2. Spiritually claimed them as his children (4:14,15).
         3. Repeatedly affirmed their continuing relationship with God and Christ:
            1. He addressed them as the “church of God in Corinth” (1:2).
            2. “By God’s love you are in Christ” (1:30).
            3. As a congregation, they “are” God’s temple and the Spirit “dwells” in them (3:16).
            4. They were washed, sanctified, and justified (6:10,11).
            5. Though they did not understand it, they “are” Christ’s body (12:27).
            6. They were included in a cooperative multi-congregational work (16:1-5).
            7. He repeated affirmed his personal relationship with them in chapter 16.
      3. It is evident that, in spite of their problems, that they:
         1. Were not out of Christ.
         2. Were not out of the brotherhood.
         3. Were not out of fellowship with other congregations.
         4. Were not out of fellowship with Paul.
      4. He declared:
         1. They must address their problems.
         2. They must awaken to the damage their problems were causing.
   4. In lesson three, we observed God’s forbearance at work in the seven congregations in Asia Minor (Revelation 2, 3).
      1. We noted:
         1. Ephesus had six positive qualities and one negative.
         2. Smyrna and Philadelphia each had three positive and one negative.
         3. Pergamum had three positive and two negatives.
         4. Thyatira has three positives and one negative of several parts.
         5. Sardis and Laodicea had all negatives and no positives.
      2. The negatives included:
         1. Loveless obedience.
         2. Encouraging idolatry.
         3. Supporting sexual immorality.
         4. Being spiritually dead.
         5. Never completing what was started.
         6. Spiritual self-delusion.
      3. All that being unquestionably true, at the time of writing:
         1. All seven congregations were still in fellowship with Christ.
         2. None were asked to break fellowship with the other.
         3. The “faithful” were not asked to separate from the “unfaithful.”
         4. The dead Sardis congregation still had some within it that were pure.
         5. The self-deluded Laodicea congregation was still loved by the Lord.
2. Now I focus your attention on an example that I believe reveals practical insights into forbearance: the problem was centered on the serious doctrinal question concerning eating or abstaining from meat.
   1. First, we must understand this first century problem among Christians.
      1. For two thousand years, from the time of Moses, Israelites were forbidden by divine authority and law to eat certain meats (Leviticus 11).
         1. For centuries, devout Jews had not eaten these meats.
         2. For generations, devout families had not eaten these meats.
      2. For generations, devout idol worshippers had eaten all kinds of meat.
         1. The typical way that an idol was worshipped in the first century was by eating a portion of their sacrifice in a sacred banquet.
         2. Eating the sacrifice was an act of worshipping the idol.
      3. In the church, two common situations are quite understandable.
         1. Some converted Jews had major conscience problems when they were asked to eat a meat that had always been forbidden to them.
         2. Some converted idolaters had major conscience problems eating a meat that had been sacrificed to an idol–eating such meat had been an act of worshipping the idol.
      4. However, some converted Jews and some converted idol worshippers correctly understood that all food was just food, a gift from the Creator God. They understood that:
         1. Food had no spiritual significance.
         2. Food could not bring you closer to God or separate you from God.
         3. All food could be eaten in purity and clear conscience.
   2. Paul in a straight forward manner dealt with this problem doctrinally in 1 Timothy 4:1-5: for a Christian to teach that other Christians must not eat meat was to yield to “deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons.”
      1. He doctrinally stated the truth.
         1. Those who believe and know the truth understand that God created all food.
         2. They gratefully accept all food.
         3. All food is good because it was created by God.
            1. It is to be received with gratitude.
            2. It is not to be rejected.
            3. It is sanctified by God’s word and by prayer.
         4. Those who teach otherwise are hypocritical liars with numb consciences.
      2. This was the doctrinally correct position:
         1. All food comes from God.
         2. All food is good.
         3. Food had no spiritual or religious significance.
   3. Romans 14 focused on the problem within the congregation at Rome.
      1. Some converts, as an act of faith, ate meat (14:2).
      2. Some converts, as an act of faith, were vegetarians (14:2).
      3. Meat eating Christians must not hold vegetarian Christians in contempt (14:3).
      4. Vegetarian Christians must not judge meat eating Christians (14:3).
      5. God accepted the meat eating Christian even if the vegetarian Christian refused to accept him (14:3).
      6. The same principle was true in regard to the observance of holy days (14:5).
      7. Basic true facts (14:5,6):
         1. The vegetarian abstained from meat to honor the Lord.
         2. The meat eater ate in thanksgiving to the Lord.
         3. The one who refused to honor holy days did so to honor the Lord.
         4. The one who kept holy days did so to honor the Lord.
         5. Each was honoring the Lord in what he or she did.
      8. Responsibilities:
         1. Do not pass judgment on each other’s opinions/conclusions (14:1).
         2. Do not hold those who disagree with you in contempt (14:3).
         3. Do not judge each other (14:3).
            1. Only the Lord is the master; none of you are the master (14:4).
            2. The Lord can and will make each of them stand (14:4).
         4. Let each Christian be convinced in his own mind (understanding) and honor his own conscience (14:5).
   4. Conclusions to be drawn from Paul’s instructions to Timothy and to the church in Rome:
      1. To teach Christians that they must not eat meat was to declare a deceitful, demonic doctrine.
      2. For a Christian to refuse to eat meat because he or she is convinced in his or her own conscience that it would displease God was an acceptable expression of devotion to the Lord, was accepted as a genuine expression of faith.
      3. No Christian may bind his own conscience on others; every Christian is free to follow his own conscience.
      4. We must not hold each other in contempt, and we must not pass judgment on each other.
      5. Even when we radically differ in our conclusions, the Lord knows our hearts, the Lord knows our consciences, the Lord knows our reasoning, and the Lord accepts us.
      6. God is that forbearing, and God is our Father; Jesus is that forbearing, and Jesus is our Lord; we must learn to be forbearing as is God and Jesus.
3. Basic observations:
   1. Forbearance is a mutual responsibility.
      1. Forbearance is not a responsibility of one group in a congregation, one side of an issue, or one position of a question.
      2. Every Christian is equally responsible to be forbearing to every other Christian.
   2. We must not hold each other in contempt or judge each other when we through study reach different conclusions and accept different responsibilities.
   3. Just a few examples:
      1. If a Christian woman is convinced in her conscience that she should worship with her head covered, she should cover it; she should not be ridiculed, nor should she pass judgment on women who, through study, have reached a different conclusion.
      2. If a Christian woman is convinced in her own conscience that she should wear only dresses, she should wear only dresses; she should not be ridiculed for her conviction, nor should she judge those who through their study reach a different conclusion.
      3. There are occasions we applaud in our assemblies. If a person is convinced through his study that he should not applaud, then he should not applaud; he should not be regarded unloving or inferior in faith because he does not applaud, but neither should he pass judgment on those who through study conclude that it is appropriate to applaud.
      4. In my understanding, such matters illustrate the specific point of Romans 14.
         1. The Lord accepts acts of conscience as appropriate expressions of faith.
         2. In such matters we are not to judge, not to be condescending, or to hold brothers or sisters in contempt.

All factions of those who are in Christ are my brothers and sisters. We all are brothers and sisters by the act of spiritual birth. God placed us in His family. The Lord added us together as His people. We are not brothers and sisters because we agree on everything each of us deems appropriate or important. We are brothers and sisters because we are in Christ. The Lord is the master over each one of us and all of us. He can make each of us stand, and he does make each of us stand. We are not family because we agree. We are family because we are in Christ.

Rescued By Gentle Hands

Posted by David on under Sermons

What answer would you give this person? “I have heard people talk about Jesus, but I know nothing about him. My family was never religious. As a child, I never visited a church. I have been to a church very few times as an adult. I have heard that he was killed, and I have heard that he came back to life. You are a Christian. You know all about Jesus. I want to understand Jesus. What is the first thing I need to know?”

What is the first thing that you would share with this person about Jesus?

1. That is a tough question.
   1. There are many appropriate “first things” to share about Jesus.
      1. He willingly left heaven to come to earth and share totally in our physical experience so he could experience life in this evil world.
      2. He was the most unselfish person who ever lived, and in that unselfishness he became the perfect Savior.
      3. He was the most caring person who ever lived, and his concern for you is genuine.
      4. He was the most powerful person who ever lived, and he can forgive you and free you from guilt.
      5. He is the resurrected one; he literally defeated death for you.
      6. All of those are appropriate “first things” to share about Jesus, and that certainly is not an exclusive list.
   2. In my younger years I would have shared a different type of “first thing” about Jesus. I would have emphasized that:
      1. Jesus is the head of the church and emphasized the importance of that fact.
      2. Or, Jesus possesses all authority and emphasized the meaning of that fact.
      3. Or, Jesus is our eternal judge, and emphasized the necessity of being prepared to stand before him as our judge.
      4. But those would not be the “first thing” that I would share about Jesus today.
         1. First, when I stressed those things in the past, I assumed that people understood the basic facts about Jesus, but sharing with people from many backgrounds has taught me that I assumed too much.
         2. Second, many people, both religious and non-religious, have a very negative concept of “church”; they view the “church” as hostile and unhelpful.
         3. Third, people who are hurting commonly judge themselves very harshly; they need to learn about a Savior.
   3. My concern as I share Christianity is the same concern that I see in God and Jesus.
      1. Peter told us that God is patient because he does not want anyone to be destroyed, but for all to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).
      2. Jesus was repeatedly presented in the gospels as the Savior of the world who wanted to give rest to all who were burdened and weary (Matthew 11:28-30).
      3. Today, people who are struggling and seeking are not attracted to Jesus by:
         1. Understanding his authority.
         2. Understanding that he is head of the church.
         3. Understanding that he is the eternal judge.
      4. Is he our spiritual authority? the head of the church? the eternal judge?
         1. Absolutely!
         2. But to the person who is hurting and seeking today, those things have no meaning and little importance.
      5. What about you? What is it that bonds you to our Savior?
         1. What is the powerful attraction that makes you willing every day to surrender your life in love and devotion to Jesus?
         2. What draws your heart as well as your mind to the Son of God?
         3. What moves your heart and binds your soul to Jesus? his authority? his headship over the church? the fact that he will be the eternal judge?
   4. As we mature as Christians, as we grow into the new self given to us at our spiritual birth, our minds and hearts are continually opening to new and deeper understandings.
      1. We begin to understand that Jesus did not come to obligate us; he came to help us.
      2. He did not come to suppress us; he came to free us.
      3. He did not come to diminish life; he came to give us life in all its fullness.
2. It is fairly common for Christians to complain about our pessimistic, skeptical, negative society.
   1. And too many in our society are pessimistic, skeptical, and negative.
      1. It is not unusual to hear people complaining about virtually everything in our society.
         1. They complain about government on both state and national levels.
            1. People have little confidence in political leaders or political institutions.
            2. Regarding the government, people are pessimistic, skeptical, and negative.
         2. They complain about our judicial system.
            1. They have no confidence in a judicial system that appears more concerned about technicalities than truth, that gives special consideration to people who have money or popularity, and that is too expensive for most people.
            2. When it comes to our courts, people are pessimistic, skeptical, and negative.
         3. The list can be expanded at length–public schools, taxes, social security, government spending, ethnic problems, marriage, and the church.
            1. Everywhere you look, there is widespread loss of confidence.
            2. Everywhere many are pessimistic, skeptical, and negative.
   2. At times we Christians join the pessimism, skepticism, and negative outlooks, and at other times the pessimism, skepticism and negative outlooks distress us.
      1. We are especially disturbed when the pessimism, skepticism, and negativity is directed at Christianity, at the church, and at our faith.
         1. It cuts deep when people complain about the indifference of the church.
         2. It distresses us when people talk about how uncaring Christians are.
         3. And as it cuts and distresses us, it is easy to react with hostility.
      2. May I suggest that instead of reacting to pessimism and skepticism, we need to try to understand why it exists.
   3. One primary reason for widespread skepticism and pessimism in our society is the loss of hope.
      1. Economically, many have lost hope.
         1. Job security does not exist for many.
         2. Everybody wants an improved standard of living, but costs make that increasingly difficult.
      2. In the home, many have lost hope.
         1. Abusive spouses are too common.
         2. Neglectful parents are too common.
         3. Rebellious children are too common.
         4. Misery in marriage is too common.
         5. Divorce is too common.
      3. What place does hope have in the following matters?
         1. Hope and a secure future?
         2. Hope and job benefits?
         3. Hope and retirement?
         4. Hope and quality medical care?
         5. Hope and your children’s future?
         6. Hope and the church?
         7. Hope and your salvation?
3. There are three great hungers in our society that are easily identified and recognized: the hunger for hope; the hunger for unconditional love; and the hunger for the caring that comes from genuine concern.
   1. All of us hunger for those three things, as does everyone we know.
      1. Everyone is starved for hope, but in their heart of hearts, the majority think there is no hope.
      2. Everyone yearns for unconditional love, to be loved just because he or she is a person, not because he or she meets someone else’s expectations.
      3. Everyone dreams of experiencing the caring that comes from genuine concern.
   2. We hunger for these things:
      1. In our homes and families.
      2. In our friendships.
      3. In our relationships.
      4. And in our relationships with God and His people.
      5. Be honest with your own heart: isn’t that what you hunger for?
   3. “Oh, but David, what you are talking about is permissiveness.”
      1. No, I am not taking about permissiveness; I am talking about the hope and caring that comes from love–real, genuine, life-giving love.
      2. Permissiveness is never a genuine source of hope; it never extends unconditional love; it does know how to be caring through genuine concern.
      3. Permissiveness is either:
         1. Too indifferent to care.
         2. Too afraid to care.
         3. Or too selfish to care.
      4. Genuine love is never indifferent, afraid, or selfish in the caring it extends.
4. This is the astounding truth: what we hunger for, what the people of our society hunger for is precisely what Jesus offers everyone.
   1. Hundreds of years before Jesus was born, God promised that a loving Savior would come who would be gentle, compassionate, and caring.
      1. Isaiah 9:1-7 talked about this promised Savior. Verse 6 declared this about him:
         For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; and the government will rest on his shoulders; and his name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.
         1. In context, it is evident that people will find peace through him.
      2. Isaiah 53:1-12 gave a striking description of Jesus hundreds of years before he was born.
         1. It declares how he will suffer, how he endured abuse for us, how he refused to retaliate or defend himself, and how God used him for our sin offering to pay for the evil that we have done.
         2. Listen to verses 5 and 6:
            But he was pierced through for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the chastening for our well-being fell upon him, and by his scourging we are healed. All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; but the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on him.
      3. Isaiah 42:1-4 gave still another descriptive statement of this Savior.
         1. And in this description, verse 3 makes this statement:
            A bruised reed he will not break, and a dimly burning wick he will not extinguish.
         2. To me that is one of the most powerful, moving insights given about our Savior, a truth Jesus verified throughout his ministry from the day of his baptism to the moment of his death.
   2. He will not break a bruised reed; he will not put out a dimly burning wick.
      1. “Please explain the bruised reed.”
         1. The bruised reed was a symbol of absolute weakness, weakness that is so terrible that it makes something completely useless.
         2. What we call cat tails are a type of reed; reeds were the long, hollow stems that grew along the rivers or in marshy ground.
         3. They were used in making mud bricks and for measuring rods.
         4. They were also used to make flutes: break off a stem, cut it the proper length, and cut a hole in the right place, and you had a flute.
         5. Reeds cost nothing; they were too common to be of any value.
         6. So if you bent one while making a flute, throw it away and get another.
         7. In making flutes, nothing was as worthless as a bent reed.
      2. “Please explain the smoldering wick.”
         1. We all have seen a candle wick just after the flame was blown out.
         2. Smoke curls as it rises from the wick.
         3. All that is left of the flame is a tiny, glowing ember in the wick.
         4. People who depended on wicks for light put that ember out quickly before it burned any more of the wick.
         5. There is so little fire in a smoldering wick, you can pinch it between your fingers and snuff it out.
   3. Hundreds of years before his birth, God said Jesus would be so loving and caring toward the burdened, the distressed, and the guilty that he would not throw away a person who was as weak and worthless as a bend reed, someone in whom only a spark glowed.
      1. With this Savior, no one would be automatically rejected because of his or her weakness.
      2. No spark would be so dim that he would pinch it out.
      3. One of the earliest messages God wanted people to understand about the Savior is this: no one is so weak that he or she is worthless to Jesus.
      4. And when you read Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, you see how very true that is of the man called Jesus.

If I am asked by someone who knows nothing about Jesus, “What is the first thing I should understand about Jesus?” that is the first thing I want to share. And that is the first thing I want you to understand about Jesus, God’s Son, the one who died to become your Savior. He will never throw the weak away, never snuff the smoldering.

It’s All In What We See

Posted by David on under Bulletin Articles

In our decision to come to West-Ark, I am indebted to Tommy Tubberville, the head coach of the University of Mississippi’s football team. He and his wife, Suzanne, are members of the Oxford congregation. He knew nothing about our leaving Oxford until I announced it. Then, how can I be indebted to him?

His decision to become head football coach at Ole Miss significantly influenced my perspective. When he accepted that position, the program was in major crisis. Twice it was found in serious violation of NCAA rules. The second time produced penalties that threatened the existence of the program. Scholarships were severely reduced. Television appearances and bowl invitations were banned. The loss of revenue would be devastating.

Since Ole Miss’ football tradition is too intense to exaggerate, alumni were deeply concerned. They wanted a quality coach who knew how to win. Coach Tubberville was an assistant coach at the University of Miami when the Hurricanes won a national championship.

At his first press conference, the hovering cloud of gloom and doom subdued the excitement of the faithful. Questions included, “Can the program survive? Can the team become competitive again?” To everyone’s shock and amazement, he replied, “In time, this program can win the national championship.” Few took him seriously. Yet, in his first year, this smallest university in the SEC had a winning season. With few scholarships available, he had unbelievable success in recruiting. His optimism was genuine. While everyone else looked at obstacles, he saw opportunity. Though the obstacles were real, he refused to permit obvious obstacles to obscure genuine opportunity.

Before I visited West-Ark, I heard about some past problems. “Then, why did you come?” First, the honest answer is that God made the decision–and we were and are profoundly grateful! Second, coach Tubberville taught me the importance of refusing to allow obvious obstacles to obscure genuine opportunity. When I met the elders and later met you as a congregation, I was deeply impressed with the genuine potential. As we, in faith, combine this potential and God’s power, the incredible will happen!

Several individuals have urged me not to be discouraged. I am not–and have not been for one moment! I arrived excited, and my optimism grows weekly. May I urge you, “Don’t doubt! Don’t fear hope, dreams, or faith! Don’t allow any disappointment from the past to obscure our future as God’s family.” Let’s place ourselves in His hands and watch what He does with and through us.

Forbearance and the Seven Churches

Posted by David on January 26, 1997 under Sermons

Forbearance is such a difficult spiritual quality to embrace. First, we never need to be forbearing unless there is a tension, a stress, or a problem. When everything is fine, there is no call or need to be forbearing. Second, being forbearing goes against our natures. When we are disturbed, or upset, or offended, or wounded, or suffering from injustice, the last thing we want to do is to “hold ourselves back” or “restrain ourselves.” Our natural inclination is to “get in there swinging and straighten this mess out.” We want resolution, not forbearance. We want justice, not forbearance. Forbearance is like mercy and forgiveness. The only time we are whole heartedly in favor of it is when it is not needed.

The most powerful motivation to be forbearing is gained by considering God. God is perfect purity, perfect holiness, perfect goodness, and perfect righteous. And this pure, holy, good, righteous God looks down on the mess humanity produces every day. No human being is ever insulted or offended as unjustly, as extensively, as unreasonably as is God. You and I have committed ourselves to being godly. I don’t know about you, but I am constantly amazed by the fact that God puts up with me.

God sees everything. He knows everything that happens. He even sees the villainy and wickedness in human hearts as they enjoy evil and promote evil. You and I never see it all; God sees it all every second. Yet, He holds Himself back, He restrains Himself.

We surely need a clear, insightful understanding of forbearance. We must see it when and where it exists. This evening we extend our insights by examining the seven congregations in Asia Minor. Revelation 2 and 3 tells us about those congregations.

1. The resurrected Jesus, from heaven, instructed John in Revelation 1:19, 20 to “write the things you have seen and heard.”
   1. Jesus said:
      1. “The seven stars in my hand are the angels of the seven churches.”
      2. “The seven lamp stands are the seven churches.”
   2. There are some specifics that we need to note.
      1. The opening of each letter to each congregation is identical: “To the angel of the church in . . .”
      2. At the moment John wrote these letters to each of the seven churches, each congregation was still in fellowship with Christ.
         1. The angel of each congregation was still in place.
         2. Each congregation was still on the lamp stand.
2. We will examine each congregation in exactly the same way.
   1. The congregation in Ephesus (2:1-7):
      1. The positives:
         1. I know that you work hard and that you persevere.
         2. I know that you will not endure evil people.
         3. I know that you have tested false prophets and rejected them.
         4. I know that you refuse to get too tired to continue on.
         5. I know that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans just as I do.
      2. The negative:
         1. You do not have the same love you had when you became Christians.
         2. Please note how important love was in the face of all that they did right.
      3. Instructions:
         1. Redirect yourselves (repent).
         2. Remember your lost love, and do the deeds that love leads you to do.
      4. Promise:
         1. If you redirect, you will eat fruit from the tree of life in God’s paradise.
   2. To the congregation in Symrna (2:8-11):
      1. Positives:
         1. I know the severity of your suffering.
         2. I know your physical poverty.
         3. I know how strong your opposition is.
      2. Negatives: None.
      3. Encouragement:
         1. You are about to experience increased suffering, but do not be afraid.
         2. This additional suffering is a test.
         3. It will last only for a period of time.
      4. Promise:
         1. Continue in your faithfulness even if it results in your death, and you will not be hurt by the second death.
   3. To the congregation in Pergamum (12:12-17):
      1. Positives:
         1. I know that you live where Satan’s throne is.
         2. Yet, you hold to My name and refuse to deny My faith.
         3. You do that even though a person in the congregation was killed.
      2. Negatives:
         1. Some of you are making the same mistake Balaam made–you are encouraging idolatry and sexual immorality.
         2. Some of you believe the teachings of the Nicolaitans.
      3. Promises:
         1. If you do not redirect soon, I will come quickly and make war with those who are doing these things.
         2. If you do redirect, I will give you a special food and a special name.
   4. To the congregation in Thyatira (2:18-29):
      1. Positives:
         1. I know what you have done.
         2. I know your love, faith, service, and perseverance.
         3. The things you are now doing are greater than the things you did in the past.
      2. Negatives:
         1. You permit a woman in the congregation who claims to be speaking for Me to encourage and lead members into idolatry and sexual immorality.
            1. She has had time to repent, but refuses to do so.
            2. If she does not, I will bring sickness and suffering upon her and those who follow her.
      3. Promises:
         1. I will kill the woman’s children.
         2. All the churches will know that I search the inner person and the heart.
         3. I will give each person according to his or her acts.
         4. To those who do not follow this woman’s teachings, I place no other burden on them.
         5. I ask them to hold what you have until I come, and you will receive authority, position, and the morning star.
   5. To the congregation at Sardis (3:1-6):
      1. Positives: none.
      2. Negatives:
         1. I know your works and reputation, and they both leave a false impression.
         2. Others think you are alive; I know that you are dead.
         3. The few things that remain good among you are almost dead; you never complete what you start.
      3. Responsibilities:
         1. Wake up.
         2. Remember the things that led you to be Christians.
      4. Promise: if you don’t, I will surprise you as a thief surprises his victims.
      5. Declaration: there are a few among you who are still pure.
      6. Promises:
         1. Those people will walk with me.
         2. I will present those who overcome to God: their names will remain in the book of life.
   6. To the congregation in Philadelphia (3:7-13):
      1. Positives:
         1. I know what you do.
         2. You have an opportunity that cannot be closed.
         3. Though you have little power, you keep my word and refuse to deny my name.
      2. Negatives: none.
      3. Promises:
         1. I will make your enemies bow at your feet.
         2. I will make them understand that I love you.
         3. Because you have persevered, I will protect you in coming hard times.
         4. The one who perseveres will be a pillar in God’s temple.
      4. Encouragement: hang on to what you have; do not let anyone take your crown.
   7. To the congregation at Laodicea (3:14-22):
      1. Positives: none.
      2. Negatives:
         1. You nauseate me to the point of vomiting you.
         2. You are completely self-deluded: you claim to be spiritually wealthy, but are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.
      3. Directive:
         1. Buy refined gold from me so that you will be rich.
         2. Buy rich clothing from me and hide your shame.
         3. Get eye salve from me and cure your blindness.
      4. Promises:
         1. I reprove and discipline those I love (He still loved them!)
         2. I am knocking right now.
            1. The one who opens the door to me will eat with me.
            2. The one who overcomes will sit on my throne with me.
      5. Responsibility: be zealous and redirect.
3. First observations:
   1. Ephesus had six glowing positives that we would applaud, and only one negative.
      1. The only negative was their love, which we would regard as lesser in importance that the six positives–they were doing the right things.
      2. Christ did not applaud.
      3. Having proper love was as important as all the glowing positives.
   2. Symrna had three positives and no negatives; Philadelphia had three positives and no negatives.
   3. Pegamum had three positives and two negatives (almost equal); Thyatira had three positives and one negative of several parts (almost equal).
   4. Sardis and Laodicea had all negatives and no positives.
   5. Yet, at the time of the writing, all these congregations were in fellowship with Christ.
4. IV.Second observations:
   1. The negatives included:
      1. Loveless obedience and service.
      2. Encouraging idolatry.
      3. Encouraging and supporting sexual immorality.
      4. Being spiritually dead.
      5. Never completing what they started.
      6. Spiritual self-delusion.
   2. Yet, at the time of writing, they all were in fellowship with Christ. What does that say about the forbearance of God?
   3. Even the worst congregations, Christ still loved, still wanted to save, and still wanted them to repent. What does that say about Christ’s forbearance?
   4. The few who were pure in Sardis were not instructed to take any course of action against their dead brothers. What does that say about our forbearance with each other?

The most astounding statement of God’s forbearance is found in 2 Peter 3:9:

The Lord is not slow about his promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.

Some were saying, “Where are you, Lord? Why are you so slow about returning? Don’t you see how we are suffering? Don’t you see how evil the people of this world are? Have you forgotten your promise?”

Peter said, “The Lord is not slow, and He certainly has not forgotten His promise. The fact that this evil world continues does not prove that the Lord is hesitant to keep His promise. Instead, it is an evidence of the Lord’s patience. He does not want one person to be destroyed, not even the most evil person on earth. He wants every person to come to repentance.”

Do you get the picture? God is not sitting in heaven fuming about all those evil people in the church and ungodly people on earth. He is not saying, “I can’t wait until I get My hands on those people. I will make them sorry they rejected me!”

God is saying, “If I wait just a little longer, perhaps they will exercise their free wills and turn to me. I don’t want to destroy anyone.” That is forbearance.

If God is that forbearing with everyone, how forbearing should we be with each other?

Passing Through the Valley of Deep Darkness

Posted by David on under Sermons

This world is a dangerous place. Our society makes life complicated for all of us. Life is confusing. We contend with new experiences every day. No day has ever been like today, and tomorrow will also be unique. Every day the world changes; every day society changes; every day we change. Nothing remains exactly the same.

We desperately need a guide in this wilderness called life. Left to ourselves, we will wander ourselves to death.

There is a reason that Psalm 23 is the best known and most popular scripture in the Bible. It tells us there is a guide.

1. The setting and message of Psalm 23:
   1. The setting of the psalm is the rugged, barren wilderness of southern Palestine.
      1. In many ways, that area is similar to the American west:
         1. Open, unfenced land as far as the eye can see.
         2. A brown landscape dominated by rugged mountains, huge boulders, and deep ravines.
         3. The only green areas are along the streams that occasionally run through the dry land.
         4. It is so dry that water is scarce and precious.
      2. In Psalm 23 the shepherd is leading his sheep in this wilderness.
         1. He and the flock are constantly moving from one small grazing place to another.
         2. Most of the time there is so little to eat that the sheep graze as they move.
         3. Rarely will you see these sheep lying down, because rarely are they full enough to lie down.
   2. In Psalm 23, a sheep is speaking.
      1. David is the sheep, and God is his shepherd leading him through the wilderness.
      2. The sheep says:
         1. God is the shepherd who leads me.
         2. He will lead me to a place so green with grass that I can eat my fill and lie down.
         3. He will lead me to still waters where I can drink and rest.
         4. And I will be refreshed.
      3. God, my shepherd, leads me along the right paths, and that brings honor to Him.
         1. It was impossible for a sheep of itself to determine the right path that would lead it to grass and water.
         2. The sheep found grass and water only because the shepherd guided it along the right path.
2. The next verse is one of the most familiar verses in the Bible, but it is misunderstood.
   “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil; for You are with me.”
   1. “The valley of the shadow of death” is also quite properly translated “the valley of deep darkness.”
      1. This verse is not talking about death as I watch it approach me.
         1. This verse is not saying that God is leading me as I near my death.
         2. For the person who belongs to God, that is a correct concept, but it is not the point of this verse.
      2. This verse is talking about living, not about dying.
         1. God is leading me through a wilderness to a place green with grass and with plenty of water so I can rest and be refreshed.
         2. He is leading me to the place that will meet my needs, and that is the place that I want to go.
         3. But to get to that place with its green grass and pool of quiet water, I must pass through a valley of deep darkness.
      3. What is a valley of deep darkness?
         1. It is a long, narrow passage tucked deep between high, rugged cliffs–cliffs so high that they block out the sunlight.
         2. It is a place of danger.
            1. It is so narrow that there is no place to run, no way to escape.
            2. It is the perfect place to be trapped.
            3. Wild animals have many places to hide, and the shadows are so deep that you do not see danger until it is upon you.
   2. What is David’s point? You cannot met the true needs of your life if you look for them on your own; only God can lead you along the right path that takes you to the place of refreshing and restoration.
      1. You cannot find the necessities that refresh the soul and give you rest unless you follow the shepherd.
      2. But if you follow the shepherd, he will lead you to the place that meets your needs and gives you rest.
      3. However, if the shepherd is to lead you to that place, you must allow Him to lead you through places you do not want to go.
         1. No sheep would ever choose to go through a valley of deep darkness.
         2. But if the sheep is to have the grass, the water, the refreshing, the rest, it must pass through the valley of deep darkness.
      4. No person by choice would choose to go through life’s valleys of deep darkness.
         1. But in this wilderness we call life, if we are to find the place that refreshes the soul and gives rest, we must allow God to lead us through those valleys.
      5. The sheep will travel through the valley of deep darkness only because he trusts the shepherd and the shepherd’s protection.
         1. He passes through that valley unafraid of harm because he trusts the shepherd.
         2. We will pass through our valleys of deep darkness unafraid of harm only when we know that God is leading us.
3. David spoke about what he knew; he spoke from the reality of his experience.
   1. He had been a shepherd.
      1. He had led his sheep to green grass, still water, refreshment, and rest.
      2. As a shepherd, he caught and killed the lion and the bear who attacked the flock (1 Samuel 17:34,35).
   2. David knew, without doubt or question, that in his relationship with God, he was the helpless sheep that needed guidance, and God was the shepherd.
      1. God led David through several valleys of deep darkness.
      2. One valley was created when King Saul attempted to kill him.
         1. Saul felt very insecure as king.
         2. When David killed Goliath, a valley of deep darkness loomed ahead.
         3. Saul heard the people singing, “Saul has killed his thousands, but David has killed his ten thousands,” he became angry and distrustful (1 Samuel 18:6-8).
         4. As David’s popularity grew, Saul became jealous as well as angry.
         5. When his jealous anger turned to rage, he attempted to kill David.
         6. David was forced to flee to the Judean wilderness to live like a hunted animal.
         7. While David was on the run hiding in the wilderness, he wrote this in Psalm 63:1-4, 6-8:
            O God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly; my soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You, in a dry and weary land where there is no water. Thus I beheld You in the sanctuary, to see Your power and glory. Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips will praise You. So I will bless You as long as I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name. . . . When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night watches. For You have been my help, and in the shadow of Your wings I sing for joy. My soul clings to You; Your right hand upholds me.
         8. Repeatedly, David escaped from Saul by trusting God.
      3. David created a radically different valley of deep darkness when he lusted after another man’s wife, seduced her, and had her husband killed to hide the evil he did.
         1. He thought he had successfully hidden his wickedness, but the prophet Nathan confronted him with his guilt.
         2. When David realized what he had done, this is what he said in Psalm 51:1-4:
            Be gracious to me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness; according to the greatness of Your compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against You, You only, I have sinned, and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You are justified when you do speak, and blameless when you do judge.
         3. After the seduction of Bathsheba and the murder of Uriah, David entered a terrifying valley of deep darkness that was filled with consequences, but God led him through it.
      4. In yet another valley of deep darkness, David’s son, Absalom, took control of the city of Jerusalem, forced his father to flee for his life, and raped his father’s wives in public.
         1. As David fled from Absalom, this is what he said (Psalm 3:l-6):
            O Lord, how my adversaries have increased! Many are rising up against me. Many are saying of my soul, “There is no deliverance for him in God.” But, You, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the One who lifts my head. I was crying to the Lord with my voice, and He answered me from His holy mountain. I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the Lord sustains me. I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people who have set themselves against me round about.
         2. Later, David was restored to his throne in Jerusalem, but it cost him the death of a son that he loved dearly.
      5. Years later, after passing through many valleys of deep darkness, David declared (2 Samuel 22:2-4, 7):
         The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge: my Savior, You save me from violence. I will call upon the name of the Lord, who is worthy to be praised; and I am saved from my enemies. . . . In my distress I called upon the Lord, yes, I cried to my God; and from the temple He heard my voice, and my cry for help came into His ears.
         1. David understood the urgency of allowing God to be the shepherd who led him through life’s valleys of deep darkness.
4. If Christ is to be our good shepherd who leads us through this wilderness to places of refreshing and rest, we must allow him to be our guide through the life’s valleys of deep darkness.
   1. Though there are many, many valleys of deep darkness in this wilderness we call life, I ask you to consider two.
      1. The first valley of deep darkness that many travel is the dark valley of worthlessness.
         1. This person believes that he or she is utterly without value or worth.
            1. “Everything I do is wrong; I make a mess of everything; I fail at everything.”
            2. “I am a walking disaster; I am filled with shame; I am consumed with guilt.”
         2. This person constantly attacks and abuses self.
         3. He or she says, “I need a Savior, but a Savior would know how worthless I am, and, with that knowledge, he could not possibly love me.”
         4. This valley of deep darkness is the valley of depression, and he or she must allow Jesus to be the shepherd who leads him or her through the valley.
      2. The second valley of deep darkness is the valley of the self-made Christian.
         1. This person asks, “What must I do to be a Christian?”
            1. “Hear, believe, repent, confess, and be baptized? Okay, done that!”
            2. “Worship properly by doing the right things? Okay, done that!”
            3. “Avoid impure things? No sexual sin, no drinking, no smoking, no cussing, no gambling? Okay, done that!”
            4. “Do God’s will? Read the Bible, pray, serve? Okay, done that!”
         2. This person believes he or she is godly because “I have done what I am supposed to do.”
            1. He or she is a self-made Christian–acquired the right spiritual model kit and put it together exactly according to the instructions.
            2. “I didn’t need a Savior; I just needed to know what to do.”
            3. “Needing a Savior would mean that I could not take care of myself.”
            4. “I can take care of myself; I just need to know what to do.”
         3. This valley of deep darkness is the valley of self-righteousness.
            1. We enter this valley innocently thinking we can make ourselves righteous by knowing and doing the right things.
            2. We don’t need a Savior, we just need the right knowledge, the right instructions.
         4. In some ways, this is the most frightening valley of all.
            1. Few things are scarier than believing “I am righteous because of what I have done” and finding out, “I desperately need a Savior.”
            2. Only Christ can guide us through this valley to places of peace and rest.

When will I find the green grass and quiet waters that restore my soul? When I understand I need a Savior. When I understand that my Savior used a cross and an empty tomb to do for me what I cannot do for myself. When I understand purity comes through the blood of Jesus. When I understand that holiness comes from being clothed in Jesus. When I understand peace comes from God’s forgiveness and love. When I understand that I serve God because I love him, not because I am trying to prove something.

God sent Jesus to be our perfect Shepherd. He can guide us through any valley of deep darkness. He knows them all. He will guide us and protect us through this wilderness called life. But you must be his sheep, and you must follow him, even when he leads you where you do not want to go. But, if you follow him, you need fear no evil.

Freeing Me By Freeing You

Posted by David on under Bulletin Articles

Slavery of the mind commonly is more horrible than slavery of the body. Frequently, an enslaved mind enslaves the body. Damaged emotions and distorted perspectives condemn the body to an unfulfilled, joyless existence. Such a mind and body experience pain frequently and contentment rarely.

Everyone sees such slavery. Consider persons enslaved mentally and physically to bitterness, jealousy, envy, anger, or vengeance. Nothing in their lives is a source of joy. Their obsession forces these people to live in degrees of misery that are always evident. Minds enslaved to such emotions constantly express themselves in the persons’ attitudes, words, actions, and body language. They never miss an opportunity to vent. Their slavery cannot be hidden.

The person enslaved focuses on the person who is the object of his or her bitterness, jealousy, envy, anger, or vengeance. The person is obsessed with his or her consuming emotion. The one who is the object of the contempt will never “pay” enough or suffer enough to right the perceived or actual wrong. The object of this contempt will never be free. He or she will be resented, despised, or hated as long as the enslaved one lives. With but one exception: forgiveness can liberate.

Two are enslaved by such negative emotions: the person who is the object of the emotions, and the person who possesses the emotions. The object is the partial slave. The possessor is the total slave. The possessor can be freed only by freeing the object.

The single greatest liberating force in human existence is forgiveness. Compassion acts on empathy. Mercy offers help. Kindness seeks to encourage. But forgiveness liberates–both the forgiver and the forgiven. Forgiveness is not the burden of my Christian responsibility. It is the gateway to my freedom. The past ceases to rule my present only when I forgive. Each time I forgive another, I free myself.

Forbearance and the Corinthian Church

Posted by David on January 19, 1997 under Sermons

Please permit me to begin our study tonight with an apology and a correction. First, the apology: I apologize for trying to cover too much material last Sunday night and going through some material too quickly. I have two basic objectives when I teach. First, I want to challenge you to think. Second, I want to increase your understanding. You do not have to agree with me. I know that I am not inspired. I understand better than anyone else that my knowledge and insights are limited.

Second, the correction: Last Sunday evening I said that God did not have to be forbearing after the death of Jesus. The context of that statement dealt with the fact that, in the death of Jesus, God paid for the sins He ignored in the past. When Jesus died, God did pay for the sins that He passed over prior to the death of Jesus. In doing that, God was true to His just nature. But that did not end the need for God’s forbearance. God satisfied justice, He paid for the right to be forbearing by sacrificing the pure blood of Jesus. But God is still forbearing; you and I are dependent on that forbearing.

1. I want to begin tonight with a point I covered too quickly last week.
   1. I cited Adam and Eve as the first manifestation of God’s forbearance.
      1. Some of you asked me about that example, and your questions made me realize I covered the material too quickly.
      2. Remember what forbearance is.
         1. Forbearance is holding oneself back.
         2. It is restraining oneself.
         3. Commonly, in reference to God, it is God restraining His wrath, holding Himself back from executing justice.
   2. Let me show you why I think Adam and Eve is an example of God’s forbearance.
      1. Turn in your Bibles to Genesis 2.
         1. In verses 8, 9 we are told that God planted a garden and placed Adam in that garden (and we know that Eve was to join Adam there).
         2. That gardened contained every food producing tree and they could eat the fruit of all those trees.
         3. It also contained the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, which was forbidden for food.
         4. In 2:17 Adam is specifically told that “in the day” that you eat from it you shall surely die.”
         5. Both Adam and Eve clearly understood what God said; in 3:3 Eve informed Satan that she was not to eat from that tree because God had said, “You shall not eat from it or touch it, lest you die.”
      2. Before I understood forbearance, this situation presented a problem for me.
         1. They ate the fruit, consequences were pronounced because they rebelled, they were forced out of the garden, but they did not die.
         2. It was in violation of other Bible teaching to conclude that God lied, because the Bible clearly states in several places that God cannot lie.
         3. For a long time I concluded that God meant something by the word death other than would be the common understanding of the word in that situation.
            1. Death means separation, so He meant that they would be spiritually separated from him.
            2. He meant that they would be spiritually dead to him.
            3. I certainly agree that they destroyed their original relationship with God and that the result was spiritual death.
            4. I wonder if we understand that because we look back as Christians; I don’t think that would be the conclusion of the early readers.
      3. Look in chapter 4, and becomes evident that the separation between God and people at this point was not total.
         1. In verse 1 when Eve gave birth to Cain, she said, “I have a son by the help of the Lord.”
         2. Abel pleased God with his sacrifice; he did well.
         3. In verse 25 when Eve gave birth to Seth, she said, “God has appointed me another son in place of Abel, for Cain killed him.”
         4. Verse 26 tells us that when Seth was an adult, a father, “Then men began to call upon the name of the Lord.”
      4. In 5:24 we are told that Enoch had such an extraordinary relationship with God that God took him from this earth without his dying–he must have been an incredibly good man.
      5. 6:2 tells us that for a while there were a group of people who were so devoted to God that they were known as the sons of God.
         1. My own personal judgment is that these were the descendants of Seth, the people who called upon the name of the Lord.
         2. It is also my personal judgment that the daughters of men referred to the descendants of Cain who wanted no contact or relationship with God.
   3. All of this information leads me to conclude that God was forbearing, that He held Himself back, that He restrained His wrath when Adam and Even sinned, and God, in His forbearance, permitted them to continue to live.
      1. That is my conclusion.
      2. I do not insist that you hold my conclusion.
2. Now I want you to examine a case of New Testament forbearance that, to me, is more astounding than Adam and Eve: God’s forbearance in the church at Corinth.
   1. First, examine their astounding congregational problems.
      1. Problem one: they were a deeply fractured congregation, and their factions were quarreling (1:11-17).
         1. Some professed loyalty to Paul.
         2. Some to Apollos.
         3. Some to Peter.
         4. Some to Christ.
         5. At the foundation of their disagreement was what to emphasize when presenting the gospel to other people.
            1. Some found proclaiming a Savior who was executed by the Roman government disgusting–people would think they followed a criminal.
            2. They preferred to teach the gospel that emphasized Greek philosophy in the area of wisdom instead of talking about the crucifixion of Jesus.
      2. Problem two: they ignored open immorality in a family by pretending the problem did not exist (5:1-13).
      3. Problem three: They were taking each other to civil court to settle their problems and differences (6:1-11).
      4. Problem four: there was an enormous disagreement about marriage (7).
      5. Problem five: there was serious confusion and disagreement about eating the meat of animals that were killed as a sacrifice to idols (8).
      6. Problem six: there was serious confusion and disagreement about hair and veils in worship assemblies (11:1-16).
      7. Problem seven: they were taking communion in a manner that hurt fellowship and divided the congregation (11:17-34).
      8. Problem eight: they were using spiritual gifts in worship assemblies to compete with each other and creating major confusion (14).
      9. Problem nine: some were teaching that there was no resurrection from the dead (15).
   2. Look at the types of problems they had:
      1. Open congregational division (the factions).
      2. Sexual immorality problems (the man living with his father’s wife).
      3. Relationship problems (taking each other to court).
      4. Fellowship problems (discrimination in abuse of the Lord’s supper).
      5. Personal conviction and conscience problems (the question of meat offered to idols).
      6. Cultural problems (the hair and veil questions).
      7. Worship problems (using the assembly for competition).
      8. Doctrinal problems (rejection of resurrection).
   3. As a Christian, what is your reaction to that mix of problems in that church?
      1. Should they be disfellowshipped as a congregation?
      2. Should certain groups in the congregation be forced to submit or leave?
      3. Should they no longer be considered either Christians or in Christ?
      4. Should they no longer be considered Christ’s church?
3. Do not form your conclusion until you consider all the evidence.
   1. In the letter, twenty-one times Paul called them “brethren.”
      1. Once it is “my brethren,” and once “my beloved brethren.”
      2. The only chapters in which he does not refer to them as brethren are chapters 5, 8, 9, and 13.
   2. He called them his children and said that he was their father (4:14, 15)–Paul spiritually claimed them.
   3. He repeatedly affirmed their continuing relationship with God through Christ.
      1. 1:2–He called them the church of God in Corinth.
      2. 1:3–He bade them grace and peace from God and Christ.
      3. 1:4–He thanked God for them and the grace they received.
      4. 1:30–He said, “By God’s doing you are in Christ.”
      5. 3:16–He said they are a temple of God (as a congregation) and that the spirit of God dwells in them (as a congregation).
      6. 6:10, 11–Paul stressed the fact that they had been ungodly, but now they were washed, were sanctified, were justified.
      7. 12:12-27–They did not understand what it meant to be Christ’s body; they did not understand that they were not supposed to be duplicates of each other.
         1. Even though they did not understand that they were Christ’s body and did not act like Christ’s body, Paul said, “Now you are Christ’s body, and individually members of it” (vs. 27).
      8. 16:1-5–Paul included them in a cooperative benevolent effort that included all the churches in the area.
      9. 16:6–He planned to come stay with them and hoped that they would support him in the future (Paul had no doubt that this congregation had a future).
      10. 16:10, 11–He was sending Timothy to them and asked them to take care of him.
      11. 16:12–He promised that Apollos would come back.
      12. 16:19,20–He sent them greetings from other Christians.
      13. 16:23–He declared, “The grace of Jesus be with you.”
      14. 16:24–“My love be with you.”
   4. This is obvious:
      1. With all their problems, they were not out of Christ.
      2. With all their problems, they were not out of the brotherhood.
      3. With all their problems, they were not out of fellowship with other congregations.
      4. With all their problems, they were not out of fellowship with Paul.
   5. Not once does Paul suggest:
      1. That they should drive a part of the congregation away.
      2. That the “faithful” should take over the congregation and defeat the “unfaithful.”
   6. Paul is insistent in his instructions.
      1. “Address your problems:
         1. “With love for Jesus Christ.
         2. “With a better understanding of Jesus Christ.
         3. “In a manner that will bring healing.”
      2. He pointedly discussed the spiritual damage their problems created, and he held them responsible to open their eyes and address the problems.
   7. That is a powerful example of God’s forbearance with those who are in Christ Jesus.
4. To me, two enormous, powerful, practical understandings leap out.
   1. Lesson one: there is too much concern in congregations today about capturing and exercising control.
      1. “We know best; our way is the best way for the congregation.”
      2. “We know best; our way will save the congregation.”
      3. “Our way is the direction the congregation must go in.”
      4. Too many things are done in congregations today because people want control.
      5. Too many Christians have the ambition to be in control.
   2. Lesson two: too much energy is wasted in congregations trying to assign blame.
      1. There often is a powerful drive to assign blame and to determine fault.
      2. Assigning blame and declaring who is at fault never solves a problem–not in a family, not in the church.
      3. Commonly, blame has two ambitions.
         1. Getting the focus on anyone but me.
         2. Exonerating me or excusing me of responsibility.
   3. Forbearance:
      1. Is not concerned about exercising control.
      2. Is not concerned about assigning blame.
      3. Is concerned about promoting peace and unity through love.
      4. Is concerned about being forgiving, kind, and gentle.

God was infinitely forbearing with the Christians at Corinth. God is infinitely forbearing with us as a congregation. God is infinitely forbearing with each of us as individual Christians. Thank You God, for your forbearance. Without it everyone of us would be spiritually dead. God, please help us learn how to be forbearing like You are–with our brothers and sisters within the church, and with all those who are outside Christ.