“Listen! You Can Hear It Coming!”

Posted by on May 23, 1999 under Bulletin Articles

“Hear what coming?” “Summer! It is so close that you can hear it! Graduations! Lawn mowers! Weed eaters! Birds singing! Thunderstorms! Mosquitoes buzzing! Fore!”

Isn’t it amazing?! Only one collective sigh of rejoicing is greater than the sigh heard when summer arrives and school is out. It is the collective sigh of rejoicing when summer is over and school begins.

January’s resolutions are history. February’s good intentions are mere memories. March’s planning fell apart. April’s dreams are fuzzy. May’s ambitions are fading. Summer is here! And that means? Anything a person wants it to mean!

Have you noticed how easily mild June’s adventuresome ideas become hot August’s grueling slavery? “David, don’t distract us! Summer is coming! Time for recreation and ‘relaxed’ schedules!” And by August we all desperately search for relief from all “the fun we are having.” Oh, the agony of having to choose between rest and fun!

Which is the healthy philosophy? Philosophy one: “Nothing should interfere with our pursuit of fun!” Philosophy two: “Nothing should interfere with our relationship with God!” Which philosophy lives in your heart and mind? your family’s?

Healthy family fun times wonderfully bless family relationships (in any season). The togetherness benefits are real and important. While those benefits are genuine, they also are short term. Nurturing a living relationship with God also produces real, important blessings. These genuine benefits are eternal.

Summer creates some marvelous opportunities for spiritual family growth and for personal spiritual development. It also creates countless seasonal opportunities to assault and damage us spiritually. In all your summer activities, travels, and involvement, keep this simple objective: “When summer ends, my family and I will be spiritually stronger and more mature than when summer began.”

Many of our college aged adults will return home for the summer. We invite them to be a part of our young adult classes. They will “fit in” these groups well. On Sunday mornings I will teach “Building a Healthy Faith.” On Wednesday evening Buster Herren will direct a discussion based on “That the World May Know.”

Above all else, make this summer a time that brings you closer to God and Christ. Make Bible classes a family affair! Make Bible study and prayer a family affair!

Who Benefits?

Posted by on May 16, 1999 under Bulletin Articles

Those devoted to God find joy in sharing insights. In conversation, Charles Wilson shared an insight that blessed me. May it also bless you.

Students of the Bible are familiar with the “two kingdom” concept. In our world the powerful forces of God and Satan are in conflict. God has His kingdom, and Satan has his. Each person’s life advances the purposes of God or the purposes of Satan.

The kingdom of God and the kingdom of Satan are not merely in conflict. The purposes of God and the purposes of Satan are in total conflict. The Bible always contrasts God and Satan’s purposes. It is the conflict between good and evil, light and darkness, life and death, or that which is eternal and that which decays.

Within us, this conflict is not resolved by affirming “whose side you are on.” At its heart, the conflict concerns purpose. Purpose is the central issue of life. What is the purpose of my life? my actions? my motives? my objectives? my goals? Do my purposes yield to God’s purposes or to Satan’s purposes? Does God or Satan define and determine my purposes?

Charles Wilson’s insight: the Bible speaks of two kingdoms, not three. There is not God’s kingdom, Satan’s kingdom, and a neutral kingdom. Committing to a third kingdom is not an option. It is impossible for “my” life to benefit neither God’s kingdom nor Satan’s kingdom.

Charles did not apply this insight to others. He said each Christian needs to apply it to self. Everything that occurs in my life benefits either the purposes of God or the purposes of Satan. Nothing that occurs in my life benefits neither God nor Satan.

As important as actions and deeds are, they are surface considerations. Spiritual maturity examines in depth my motives, intents, thoughts, desires, and emotions.

God and Satan are at war over spiritual purposes. Everything that occurs in my mind, my heart, and my deeds endorses the purposes of one or the other. Growing to godly maturity is more than labeling actions as good and evil and culling them accordingly.

Spiritual maturity is based on a mind that belongs to Christ and a heart that belongs to God. That mind and heart are devoted to God’s purposes–always. The real question always is, “Who benefits, God or Satan?”

Bigger Than “Me”?

Posted by on May 9, 1999 under Bulletin Articles

When individuals are insignificant, slavery thrives. “What is good for people?” is rarely the determining issue. “Who has the power?” is the determining issue.

When the individual is supreme, anarchy thrives. “What is collectively good for all?” is rarely the determining issue. “What pleases me?” is the determining issue.

Both extremes share many things in common. Each declares to people, “You exist for my good.” Commonly, the first makes that statement to the individual. The person’s justification for existence is to “serve the controlling power.” Commonly, the second makes that statement to the controlling power. The controlling power’s justification for existence is to “serve the individual.” The fundamental difference is who serves whom.

Both extremes focus on desires and rights. The first focuses on the desires and rights of those who are the power. The second focuses on the desires of the individual.

Both are extremely selfish and self-centered. In its selfishness, the controlling power is basically concerned with sustaining and advancing itself. In his or her selfishness, the individual is basically concerned with protecting and advancing “my rights.”

An irresponsible, self-centered controlling power is capable of abusing individuals in unthinkable ways. An irresponsible, self-centered individual is capable of abusing society and others in unthinkable ways.

When a controlling power believes that nothing is more important than itself, its natural tendency is to be arrogant, unconcerned about people, exploiting, and abusive. When the individual believes that nothing is more important than “I am,” his or her natural tendency is to be arrogant, unconcerned about people, exploiting, and abusive.

In either case, people suffer. In either case, society suffers. In either case, hearts grow cold and hard, as minds grow arrogant and defiant.

Many values are found through accepting the living God’s existence, placing faith in God, and sustaining relationship with God. Just one is a blessing defying description when controlling human powers and individuals realize, “Something IS bigger than me.” The more we accept accountability and responsibility, the more people are blessed.

Violence In a “Fix-A-Flat” Society

Posted by on May 2, 1999 under Sermons

Fix A Flat

[Place a can of Fix-A-Flat® on a stool by the pulpit before the assembly.]

A few months after we moved to Fort Smith, Joyce and I rode the streets of the neighborhood late one Saturday afternoon. About an hour after we came home, Joyce noticed we had two flat tires. It was almost dark Saturday evening. And we have two flat tires–one spare tire is not enough.

I solved the immediate problem with a can of Fix-A-Flat®. It temporarily sealed the hole and inflated the tire. Compared to the flat tire, it looked great. It looked like I had actually solved the problem.

But my problem only appeared to be fixed. The “fix” was very temporary. Fix-A-Flat® is a short term solution.

  1. Last week was indescribably traumatic for this nation.
    1. The shootings that occurred on April 20th at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, put the nation in a state of shock.
      1. The fact that another act of violence occurred did not shock us; we have become quite accustomed to violence.
        1. Drive-by shootings are nothing new.
        2. Rapes are a common occurrence.
        3. Drug related deaths bring only the comment “what can you expect.”
        4. Domestic violence rates only a shrug of the shoulders.
        5. Suicides bring a confused shake of the head.
      2. But there are certain safe zones in our society.
        1. There shall be no violence in:
          1. A hospital.
          2. A rest home.
          3. Facilities for the mentally challenged.
          4. A church.
          5. Or a school.
        2. When violence occurs in these “safe contexts,” we are shocked.
    2. The Littleton shootings were major fuel for our great social debate: Why is America so violent? Why do kids kill kids in our wealthy society?
      1. We still don’t “get it.”
        1. To those of us who lived in hard times, material prosperity was the answer, the solution.
        2. To those of us who have known only prosperity, material prosperity is boring, and empty, and depressing.
        3. Ask your teenager, “Is this a wonderful time to live in America?”
      2. Predicably, the shootings produced an urgent quest to find something or someone to blame.
        1. The media is to blame because it publicizes violence.
        2. The forms of entertainment that glorify violence are to blame.
        3. It is the peer’s fault for harassing and rejecting the two young men.
        4. It is the parents’ fault; they should have known.
        5. It is the teachers’ fault; they should have known.
        6. It is the fault of the police; they had earlier warnings.
        7. It is security’s fault; it was not prepared.
        8. It is society’s fault; we own too many guns.
        9. It is mental healthy’s fault; our troubled children are not getting help.
      3. Each of those realities has merit.
        1. Each of them acknowledge a real problem.
        2. But each of them have limitations.
        3. And none of them address the core problem.
    3. Second only to the question of “Why?” was the question, “What is the solution?”
      1. You know our American society.
      2. Every problem must have a quick fix that is effective immediately.
      3. A problem takes two decades to reach complexity, but there must be an effective solution that solves the problem in a few days.
      4. A “right now” solution must exist and provide a quick fix that is effective immediately.
      5. The proposed solutions rang out:
        1. Better security.
        2. Metal detectors.
        3. Eliminate access to guns.
        4. Arm the teachers.
        5. Regulate the violence in the video games.
        6. Eliminate violent content in entertainment.
        7. Pass laws that make parents accountable for their children’s actions.
    4. The third question quickly followed, “Who is to blame?”
      1. Fingers pointed in 360 degrees.
      2. You know our American society; it always someone else’s fault.
      3. We must determine who is to blame, and they will be sued.

    I want to say something that only a few people have voiced to me. You may powerfully agree with me; or you may powerfully disagree with me. I am not seeking agreement. I am asking you to form a perspective. I am challenging you to open your eyes.

  2. What Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold did was incredibly evil.
    1. Every aspect of everything they did was evil.
      1. Their hatred was evil.
      2. Their motive was evil.
      3. Their intent was evil.
      4. Their values were evil.
      5. Their hero was evil.
      6. Their deeds were evil.
    2. There is an incredible irony in that truth: a significant segment of our society does not believe in the existence of evil.
      1. The younger the adult, the less likely he or she is to believe in the existence of evil.
        1. Many teenagers do not believe evil exists.
        2. Some teens believe that evil represents the highest form of good.
        3. Everything is good.
        4. Nothing is to be condemned.
      2. Does your child believe that evil exists? What is his or her definition of evil?
    3. Moral vacuums cannot exist, not in individuals, not in families, not in society.
      1. For decades our society has worked to restrict or remove the influence of God from every possible sector of life.
      2. Our humanism denies the influence of God.
      3. Our secularism belittles the influence of God.
      4. Our materialism prostitutes the influence of God.
      5. The result: our society increasingly endorses moral values that oppose God.
    4. As this transition grows:
      1. Our society increasingly devalues human life.
        1. Consider abortion, domestic violence, rape, suicide, murder.
        2. Recently, Bill Smith [an elder in the White’s Ferry Road congregation, in West Monroe, Louisiana, who is an experienced trainer, teacher, and authority in the development and use of the small group ministry] observed that the legal problems for a person who destroys an eagle’s egg are far more serious than the legal problems of a person who aborts a baby.
      2. As a society, we are a self-indulgent, self-centered people who regard pleasure, gratification, fun, and indulgence as life’s highest priorities.
    5. Only God teaches:
      1. The value of a soul is greater than the whole world.
      2. The highest calling of life is to be a servant to everyone.
      3. There is greater blessing in giving than receiving.
      4. We should pray for those who hate us and bless those who abuse us.
      5. We determine how we treat others by examining how we want to be treated.
      6. We forgive rather than hate.
      7. We exalt and value compassion, mercy, kindness, and tenderheartedness as noble virtues.
      8. It is no coincidence that as society distances itself from God that these values evaporate.
      9. It is no coincidence that the more significant God is in a person’s life, the greater respect the person has for people.
  3. If I suggested we do it Jesus’ way, would you tell me, “It won’t work!”
    1. The first century world in which Jesus lived and died was an evil, violent world.
      1. Peter started a boycott of goods and services throughout the Roman world.
      2. Paul led a grass roots movement for political reform.
      3. Barnabas lobbied the Roman senate for laws restricting weapons distribution.
      4. Timothy started an empire-wide petition for a just, equitable security system.
    2. That sounds so ridiculous you look at me like I am crazy.
      1. A world-wide movement began with lost, broken, outcasts who had no hope.
      2. In God, in Jesus Christ, they found an eternal reason to live and to die.
      3. The result: in sixty years the world experienced changes never dreamed of because people changed one person at a time.
    3. Explain to Peter, Paul, James, John, Barnabas, Timothy, Titus, Apollos, Stephen, Mary, Martha, Priscilla, Dorcas, Lydia, and Euodia why it won’t work.
      1. Then explain to Jesus why it won’t work.
      2. Then explain to me how what we have done the last four decades will work.
    4. “David, you are against laws, and reforms, and grassroots movements, and boycotts, and all such things, aren’t you?”
      1. No, I am not.
        1. They each have value.
        2. They each can be a helpful tool.
      2. But every one of those solutions fail when they seduce us to put our faith in ourselves instead of our God.
      3. WE are not the solution; WE are incapable of creating the solution.
      4. The living, active, powerful God is the solution.
        1. Faith in God is the solution.
        2. Dependence on God is the solution.
        3. Allowing God to change our hearts is the solution.
        4. The values of Jesus Christ are the solution.
        5. Repentance is the solution.
    5. The core reason that the shootings in Littleton happened is the absence of God in lives that were controlled by evil.

Prayer: God, help us stop placing our faith in ourselves. Teach us how to repent. Humble us before You.

Galatians 6:7,8 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. (The New American Standard Bible, 1995 Update, La Habra, California: The Lockman Foundation, 1996.)

It is harvest time. We are harvesting what we have sown and cultivated for decades. The crop is ripe. It is long past time that we begin planting a different crop.

Longing For “Times When Things Were Simple”

Posted by on under Bulletin Articles

“Oh, that we could return to the times when things were simple!” When were those times? In the days of the “great war” which was fought to permanently end the possibility of war? Or the second world war fought after the war to end all wars? Was it the decade when our troops returned home to an economy that could not absorb so much manpower? Was this time during those days when a war time economy struggled to return to peace time enterprises? Were those the times of the “Korean Police Action” or the “Vietnam Conflict”?

Were those the times of the “speak easy” era? prohibition? the escapades of people like Al Capone or Bonnie and Clyde? The times of the “great dust bowl”? The times prior to Social Security or Medicare? Maybe the times when “the smoke-filled room” controlled political parties and elections? Maybe the social upheavals of the 60’s?

The “times when things were simple” exist only in “selective memory.” They are illusions that appear in the rear view mirrors of the “complicated now.” As each generation ages, it looks back to “a simpler time” when things were not so complex and life was not so demanding. However, our backward glances suffer from a perpetual illness. Backward glances “see” from the pleasant light of “glowing memories.” Those memories commonly focus on the “good experiences” (often exaggerated) as the person refuses to recall “bad” realities.

As history marches on, as civilization expands, as one age fades and another emerges, human existence becomes increasingly complex. As peoples become nations and nations become a global community, human existence becomes increasingly complex. As societies develop and fragment, human existence becomes increasingly complex.

Most Americans have only a small taste of how radical “progressive changes” can be. In the early 1970s I talked to an elderly African man who had met the first “white man” to set foot in his region. He was also fully aware of the first man to set foot on the moon. Can you imagine a person being exposed to that much transition in his life span?

Only one eternal constant exists in our complex world: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and today, yes and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). The ages will never be too complex for Jesus to rescue and sustain. Understanding Jesus will enable any generation to cope with and survive its age.

Letting God Teach Me How To Love

Posted by on April 28, 1999 under Sermons

We Christians commonly experience problems when we think about God. If we listen to us collectively as a church, we don’t talk much about God. We think and talk about God occasionally. We think and talk about Jesus Christ much more often. We think and talk about the church a lot.

Why do we do that? There are a lot of reasons. But consider just one reason. We find the church easy to think and talk about. We find Jesus Christ more complex to think and talk about. We find God extremely complicated to think and talk about.

Like people throughout the ages, we tend to make God a human being–an extraordinary human being, but a human being none the less. Intellectually, we say God is not a human. Yet, when we try to understand God, we tend to think of God as the best and highest of all humans. For example when we think of God’s goodness or God’s love, we tend to limit God’s goodness and love to the goodness and love that we would expect in the ideal person.

But the truth is that God is not human. God’s goodness and love exceed human goodness and love in every consideration.

  1. In His goodness, God never stops loving.
    1. God gave Adam and Eve the ideal human existence (Genesis 2).
      1. They abused His kindness and rebelled against His instructions.
      2. But God still loved them.
    2. Generations later, people were so wicked that they never thought one good thought (Genesis 6,7,8).
      1. Their wickedness was so absolute that God could not tolerate their evil.
      2. Yet, God still loved people and began again with Noah and his family.
    3. God made the key promise of human history to Abraham (Genesis 12:1-3).
      1. Abraham made a lot of mistakes.
        1. He had moments of deep doubt.
        2. He lied about Sarah being his wife.
        3. He had a son by Hagar because Sarah insisted that he do so.
      2. But God still loved him.
    4. We could make a long list of the mistakes made by Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph, but God still loved them.
    5. After God delivered the Israelites from Egypt, they were miserable failures in the wilderness.
      1. Their acts of faithlessness far outnumbered their acts of faith.
      2. But God still loved them.
    6. The period of the Israelite judges was one of the lowest points in Jewish history (Judges).
      1. It was a time filled with lawlessness, idolatry, and violence.
      2. But God still loved them.
    7. Conditions became so wicked in the period of the Jewish kings, that once again God could not tolerate the wickedness.
      1. He begged the people to repent and return to Him, and they would not.
      2. He told them the consequences that they would suffer, and still they refused to listen.
      3. He even told them when they passed the critical point of no return; the captivity and exile were inevitable and unavoidable.
      4. And still God loved them.
    8. To me, in a unique manner, the prophet Hosea gives voice to God’s love.
      1. Hosea in stark, honest terms declared Israel’s wickedness and evil.
        1. There was no faithfulness, kindness, or knowledge of God (4:1).
        2. They were liars, murderers, and thieves who committed adultery (4:2).
        3. Their priests did nothing to teach the people about God (4:4-6)
        4. They chased idols and let their daughters practice cultic prostitution (4:11-14).
      2. Listen to the agony that they caused God because He loved (Hosea 11:1-4).
        Hosea 11:1-4 When Israel was a youth I loved him, And out of Egypt I called My son. The more they called them, The more they went from them; They kept sacrificing to the Baals And burning incense to idols. Yet it is I who taught Ephraim to walk, I took them in My arms; But they did not know that I healed them. I led them with cords of a man, with bonds of love, And I became to them as one who lifts the yoke from their jaws; And I bent down and fed them. (The New American Standard Bible, 1995 Update, La Habra, California: The Lockman Foundation, 1996.)
      3. With all they did to grieve God, God still loved them.
  2. God’s love is so astounding that it simply refuses to give up.
    1. John 3:16,17 For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. (The New American Standard Bible, 1995 Update, La Habra, California: The Lockman Foundation, 1996.)
    2. Romans 5:6-8 For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. (The New American Standard Bible, 1995 Update, La Habra, California: The Lockman Foundation, 1996.)
    3. 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. (The New American Standard Bible, 1995 Update, La Habra, California: The Lockman Foundation, 1996.)
  3. We have a problem: we struggle to accept the truth that divine love cannot be confined by the limits of our comprehension.
    1. We either say in words or in our thoughts, “No one can be that loving!”
      1. “No one can be that good, that compassionate, that forgiving, that merciful, that kind, or that generous.”
      2. Our reasoning says that if it cannot exist in a human it simply cannot exist.
      3. No human can be that loving, but God can be and God is.
    2. The greatest single manifestation of God’s love is Jesus Christ.
      1. He fed the people that he knew would turn against him (John 6).
      2. He cleansed people who were the outcasts of society because of their leprosy (Matthew 8:1-4).
      3. He brought the good news about the Savior and God’s kingdom to Sychar by interacting with a Samaritan divorcee who was living in adultery (John 4).
      4. He forgave an immoral woman who washed his feet with her tears (Luke 7:36-50).
      5. He brought salvation to the Zachaeus who was a chief tax collector, a position of greed and dishonesty (Luke 19:1-10).
      6. As he was dying on the cross, he asked God not to hold the people who were responsible for his death accountable (Luke 23:34).
      7. As Jesus died, he forgave a thief who was dying for crimes the thief committed (Luke 23:39-43).
    3. In Matthew 12 Jesus had a major confrontation with the Pharisees, and the end result was that the Pharisees were infuriated.
      1. Jesus left the area.
        1. An enormous group of people followed him, and he healed all of them.
        2. He asked them not to reveal his identity as the Christ.
        3. Matthew wrote Jesus asked this so that a statement made about him by the prophet Isaiah hundreds of years earlier might be fulfilled.
      2. Listen to that statement in Isaiah 42:1-4.
        Isaiah 42:1-4 “Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold; My chosen one in whom My soul delights. I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the nations. He will not cry out or raise His voice, Nor make His voice heard in the street. A bruised reed He will not break And a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish; He will faithfully bring forth justice. He will not be disheartened or crushed Until He has established justice in the earth; And the coastlands will wait expectantly for His law.” (The New American Standard Bible, 1995 Update, La Habra, California: The Lockman Foundation, 1996.)
        1. Focus on verse 3: “A bruised reed he will not break, and a dimly burning wick he will not extinguish.”
        2. Measuring rods were made from the reeds that grew along the river banks.
          1. They cost nothing.
          2. Pull one, cut it to the right length, and use it; but if you bend it, break it and throw it away.
        3. When you blew the lamp flame out, a wick would have one small ember that glowed from which a wisp of smoke arose.
          1. You could easily put it out by pinching it between your fingers.
          2. That glow was very delicate and did not last long.
        4. God’s love shown in Jesus will not throw away a broken nobody who is worth nothing.
        5. God’s love shown in Jesus will not kill a glowing ember that is almost out.
      3. That is how much God loves.
        1. God’s love is not in question.
        2. The question is, have we let God teach us how to love like He does?
  4. God saves broken people, and God uses broken people to accomplish His purposes.
    1. “Why would God do that?”
      1. That is an excellent question! We must understand the answer.
      2. God works through broken people who believe on Him to make it clear that the power lies in God, not in people.
    2. That focuses our attention on a problem that Christians need to address.
      1. Too few Christians have experienced brokenness.
      2. Because too few have experienced brokenness, too few have repented.
      3. We extol the value of what we define to be goodness.
        1. That definition of goodness excludes the possibility of brokenness.
        2. If we are broken, we are broken by evil.
        3. So we feel the need to deny our problems so that we can demonstrate our goodness.
        4. Why? Because we think that God loves good people.
        5. We convinced ourselves that we are saved because we are good.
      4. We need an understanding of Jesus’ statement, “I desire compassion and not sacrifice, for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners” (Matthew 9:13).
    3. Christians who do not experience brokenness do not discover gratitude for their salvation.
      1. Salvation becomes an intellectual understanding instead of an actual deliverance.
      2. Salvation is a product of human knowledge, reasoning, and intelligence, not the action of a compassionate, loving God who by His power cleansed us in the innocent blood of His Son.
      3. Salvation becomes a human achievement, not a resurrection to life by the power of God.

Until we experience God’s love, until we let God to teach us how to love, we will never serve the eternal purposes of the eternal God who John says is love (1 John 4:8).

What Are Our Greatest Fears?

Posted by on April 25, 1999 under Sermons

This evening, we will approach our lesson in a different manner. As I told you in the welcome, I want you to think about the greatest fears that exist in our society. I want us to focus on the major, real fears, not the abstract concept of fear.

For just a few minutes, I want you to share with me and the assembly great fears that are common in our society. Hold up your hand, and for just a few minutes I will bring the microphone around and let people acknowledge fears that are in our society.

(Spend about ten minutes letting people in the audience identify common fears.)

Thank you! (Briefly summarize or make a statement about the kinds of fears shared.)

  1. The first thing we must understand about the fears that terrorize humanity is the immediate, direct bond that exists between fear and evil.
    1. The fear that terrorizes us exists because evil exists in our world and society.
      1. If it were possible to eliminate all evil, all influence of Satan in our world, the fear that terrorizes would cease to exist.
      2. Because it is not possible to eliminate all evil, all influence of Satan, the fear that terrorizes always exists.
    2. It is no accident that the Bible reveals that fear became a part of human existence at the same time that evil became a part of human existence.
      1. When Adam and Eve were seduced by Satan’s temptation and rebelled against God, an immediate result was fear.
      2. Genesis 3:8-10 make this evident:
        1. Because of their surrender to evil, they experienced shame (a new experience!).
        2. In shame they tried to hide from God.
        3. With the shame came fear; they also tried to hide because they were afraid.
      3. Humanity can so completely surrender to evil that they destroy their ability to be ashamed; but they never destroy their fears.
  2. One of the benefits of building a close relationship with God is the destruction of the fear of terror.
    1. One of God’s objectives in His people is to destroy the fear of terror.
      1. After Abraham rescued Lot from his captors, God spoke to Abraham to reassure him.
        1. God began with the words, “Abram, fear not” (Genesis 15:1).
        2. Though he lived as a nomad in a strange land filled with enemies, God did not want him to be afraid.
      2. When Isaac was struggling with the men of Gerar over water wells, God spoke to Isaac and said, “Do not fear for I am with you” (Genesis 26:24).
      3. When Daniel saw a terrifying vision that caused him to turn pale and tremble, God said, “Fear not, Daniel” (Daniel 10:12).
        1. God said that He had come to Daniel because of Daniel’s desire to understand and because of his humility.
        2. Though Daniel was a captive with many enemies, God did not want him to be afraid.
      4. Though God revealed through Isaiah the terrible consequences that Israel would pay for their long history of evil, God also gave promises and reassurances to Israel.
        1. “Fear not, for I am with you” (Isaiah 41:10; 43:5).
        2. “Fear not, I will help” (Isaiah 41:13).
        3. “Fear not, for I have redeemed you” (Isaiah 43:1).
      5. When Paul was on a doomed ship caught in a terrible storm, the Lord spoke to Paul and said, “Fear not, Paul” (Acts 27:24).
    2. I hope that you will do some reading, studying, and thinking about the great servants of God revealed to us in scripture.
      1. They were great servants dedicated to God’s purposes because of their faith in God, their love for God, and their awe and reverence of God.
      2. In the truest sense, they trusted God and depended on God.
      3. While they all had great reverence for God, they were not afraid of God, nor did they let circumstances cause them to live their lives in terror continually.
    3. To me one of the most insightful lessons about the fear of terror is found in one of Jesus’ parables, the parable of the talents in Matthew 25.
      1. The servant who was entrusted with one silver talent, an enormous amount of money at that time, hid the silver because he was afraid.
      2. He returned to his master exactly what the master gave him with this explanation (Matthew 25:24,25):
        1. “I knew you were a hard man.”
        2. “I knew you harvested what you did not plant.”
        3. “I hid the silver because I was afraid.”
        4. He was afraid because he did not know his master.
        5. In this parable, God is the master.
        6. Are we the servant who misunderstands God and are afraid?
    4. Let me share some summary thoughts.
      1. The poorer our relationship with God, the greater our fear.
      2. The better our relationship to God, the less fear we have.
      3. The greater the distance between us and God, the greater our fear.
      4. The closer we are to God, the less fear we have.
      5. Faith and love work together to destroy fear.
        1. That is true in human relationships.
        2. It is true in our relationship with God.

To each of His sons and daughters, God says, “Don’t be afraid; I am with you.”

The “Light Bulb” Experience

Posted by on under Sermons

This morning I want to begin by asking two questions. They are easy questions. They will not make you feel uncomfortable or embarrass you. I want you to answer each question by holding up your hand.

If you have ever taught a class of any kind, you have been a teacher. Question number one: how many of you have ever been a teacher? All of you who have taught a class, please hold up your hand. (Pause for response.) Thank you!

If you have been a teacher, you taught at least one student “who just did not get it.” This student was not stupid, or dumb, or lacking in basic intelligence. He or she simply did not understand what you were trying to teach. Having been that student too many times, I have great empathy for students “who just do not get it.”

Everyone of us has been a student. Everyone of us has been taught by a teacher. Question number two: when I ask who was your favorite teacher, how many of you can remember a specific person who was a favorite teacher? If you can remember a favorite teacher, hold up you hand. (Pause for response.) Thank you!

A teacher becomes a favorite teacher for many reasons. Commonly, all those reasons are connected to one basic truth. A favorite teacher is a teacher who helped you understand things that you had difficulty understanding.

lightbulb graphic Both those questions involve the “light bulb experience.” The “light bulb experience” is that moment when I see things that I never saw before. Because I see, I understand.

When you are a Christian, you allow God to lead you from one “light bulb experience” to another. As long as a person follows God, he continues to have “light bulb” experiences.

Isaiah 42:6-9 “I am the Lord, I have called you in righteousness, I will also hold you by the hand and watch over you, And I will appoint you as a covenant to the people, As a light to the nations, To open blind eyes, To bring out prisoners from the dungeon And those who dwell in darkness from the prison. “I am the Lord, that is My name; I will not give My glory to another, Nor My praise to graven images. “Behold, the former things have come to pass, Now I declare new things; Before they spring forth I proclaim them to you.” (The New American Standard Bible, 1995 Update, La Habra, California: The Lockman Foundation, 1996.)

  1. “David, can you show me a specific example of a real person for whom God ‘turned the light bulbs on’?” I surely can.
    1. There once was a man who was a major Bible scholar, who was one of the most devout, conscientious people to follow God (Galatians 1:14).
      1. This man’s Bible teacher was the greatest scholar of his day (Acts 22:3).
      2. This man was a member of a religious group known for its devotion to the authority of Bible (Acts 26:5; 23:6).
      3. To use our terminology, this man could quote book, chapter, and verse with the best of them–his knowledge of scripture was astounding.
    2. BUT, while he had an incredible knowledge of scripture, he did not correctly understand what he knew.
      1. He believed that Israel and only Israel was God’s people.
      2. He believed that Jesus was a fraud, a false prophet, and a terrible threat to God’s true purposes; he certainly did not believe that Jesus was the Christ.
      3. In his knowledge of scripture this man was so certain that Christians were God’s enemies that he arrested and voted to kill Christians in the absolute confidence that he was accomplishing God’s purposes (Acts 26:9-11).
    3. In fact, this man was traveling to another country to arrest Jews who believed in Christ and bring them back to Jerusalem for trial when he had his “light bulb experience (Acts 9:1-9).
      1. That literally is when Paul was struck to the ground by a light that was more brilliant than the noon sun.
      2. The resurrected Jesus spoke directly, personally to Paul.
      3. After three days of praying and fasting, this enemy of Christians was baptized to be a Christian (Acts 22:14-16).
    4. From that moment, his understanding of his knowledge changed 180 degrees.
      1. He did not receive new knowledge; he was the same scholar after the experience that he was before the experience.
      2. It was not new knowledge that totally turned Paul’s life around; it was a new understanding of what he knew.
      3. When Paul had his “light bulb experience,” do you know what Jesus told him?
        1. Acts 26:16-18 But get up and stand on your feet; for this purpose I have appeared to you, to appoint you a minister and a witness not only to the things which you have seen, but also to the things in which I will appear to you; rescuing you from the Jewish people and from the Gentiles, to whom I am sending you, to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me.’ (The New American Standard Bible, 1995 Update, La Habra, California: The Lockman Foundation, 1996.)
        2. Before this experience, Paul would never teach that Jesus was the Christ.
        3. Before this experience, Paul would never go to Gentiles, non-Jews, to teach them.
        4. And what did Jesus send him to do?
          1. To open their eyes so that they could turn from darkness to light, from the dominion of Satan to God.
          2. To open their eyes so that they could receive forgiveness of sins and the inheritance of those sanctified by faith in Jesus.
      4. Is it surprising when Paul the Christian wrote a prayer to the Ephesian Christians, he prayed, [Ephesians 1:18] “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints. (The New American Standard Bible, 1995 Update, La Habra, California: The Lockman Foundation, 1996.)
  2. Did Paul really come to a new understanding of his knowledge?
    1. Allow the book of Romans to illustrate the “light bulb experience.”
      1. In Romans 1:16,17 Paul the Christian wrote, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “But the righteous man shall live by faith.” (The New American Standard Bible, 1995 Update, La Habra, California: The Lockman Foundation, 1996.)
        1. Before Paul had his eyes opened, he declared that the law was the power of God to save.
        2. After Paul’s eyes were opened he declared that the gospel was God’s power to save.
        3. Before Paul had his eyes opened, he declared that salvation is found among the Jews.
        4. After his eyes were opened, he declared that God extends salvation to people who are not Jews.
        5. Before his eyes were opened, Paul would not have used Habakkuk 2:4 to prove that a righteous man lives by faith.
      2. In Romans 4:3 Paul wrote, “For what does the Scripture say? Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.” (The New American Standard Bible, 1995 Update, La Habra, California: The Lockman Foundation, 1996.)
        1. Before Paul had his eyes opened, Paul declared that God made a person righteous through Jewish ritual circumcision and obedience to the law.
        2. After Paul had his eyes opened, Paul declared that God always had looked on a person as being righteous because of the person’s faith.
        3. Before his eyes were opened, Paul would not have used Genesis 15:6 to prove that truth.
      3. In Romans 4:7,8 Paul wrote, “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds have been forgiven, And whose sins have been covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will not take into account.” (The New American Standard Bible, 1995 Update, La Habra, California: The Lockman Foundation, 1996.)
        1. Before Paul had his eyes opened, he declared if you disobey the law you paid the consequences.
        2. After he had his eyes opened, Paul declared that a form of divine forgiveness not only forgave, but it covered sins because God would not take a person’s sins into account.
        3. Before his eyes were opened, Paul would not have used Psalms 32:1,2 to prove that truth.
      4. One major argument the Jewish people made against Christianity was that salvation by faith was unfair to God’s chosen people.
        1. In Romans 9:6-13 Paul explained that salvation by faith is an act of the sovereign God.
        2. As proof Paul cited the fact that God decided to work through Jacob instead of Esau before those twins were born.
        3. God is sovereign; He can do what He chooses to do.
        4. Before he had his eyes opened, Paul would not have used Jacob and Esau to prove God’s sovereignty.
  3. God is the God who sees–everything.
    1. For example, God knows everything about each one of us.
      1. Jesus said that He knows how many hairs we have on our heads.
      2. He knows every weakness, flaw, evil desire, wrong motive, failure, mistake, and undesirable fact about everyone of us.
      3. And knowing all that, He still loves each one of us, still has compassion for each one of us, and still extends mercy and forgiveness to each one of us.
    2. When we let God open our eyes, we begin to see people as God sees people.
      1. With all their flaws and failures? No.
      2. With love, compassion, mercy, and forgiveness.
    3. This world is filled with people who hate and in their hatred destroy people.
      1. Kosovo is just one example of people hating people.
      2. Often if you trace hatreds to their roots, the tap root is religion.
      3. Too often one religion that created and sustains hatred is Christianity.
      4. I understand that the present violence is a product of atheistic communism.
      5. However, in the Kosovo tragedy, guess who received Christian teachings? The Serbs.
      6. The hate began more than 600 years ago when those who worshipped Allah invaded those who worshipped Jesus.
    4. Tears come to my eyes.
      1. When I see the refuges flooding out of Kosovo, tears come to my eyes.
      2. When I hear from Christian brothers and sisters in Serbia living in terror of the bombs, tears come to my eyes.
      3. When hatred rules, we desperately need something beyond a military solution or a political solution; they don’t work; they never have worked.
      4. What we need are “opened eyes,” “light bulb experiences.”

Prayer: God open the eyes of our hearts. Help us see with Your eyes. Once we let You change our world in sixty years by opening eyes.

Have you had Paul’s “light bulb experience”? “Light bulb experiences” do more than change lives. They change families. They change communities. They change nations. They change the world.

Through “light bulb experiences,” we understand. We understand what we always knew. Knowledge changes your life just a little. Understanding turns your life upside down.

Addressing Spiritual Needs

Posted by on under Bulletin Articles

I pray about numerous things regularly. One prayer focuses on my teaching and preaching. It is simple. “God, direct my growth in understanding Your purposes. Guide me as I seek to address the needs of Your people effectively.”

As years of teaching pass, my awe of God, the Christ, and the Spirit mushrooms. The effect of years of studying and teaching touches my heart and mind in countless ways. The more I learn, the more I see my ignorance. The more I understand, the more I know that the eternal God exceeds human comprehension. The deeper my insights grow, the more I realize how shallow they are.

Each time that I am privileged to teach or share a sermon, some realizations flood my heart and mind. The objective is not to bring people “to my level of knowledge” (whatever that means). That objective is unworthy of the eternal purposes of God. The objective is not to get people to agree with me. That objective is blind to the war between God and Satan. The objective is not to impress people. That deceitful objective embraces the evil of Matthew 6:1. The objective is not personal gratification and fulfillment. That objective accomplishes Satan’s purposes, not God’s.

I prayerfully remind myself that my objective is to bring people closer to God by better understanding Jesus Christ.

What do I see from the pulpit? I see: levels of knowledge that run from outright ignorance to well informed; an indescribable mixture of opinions and conclusions; a huge variety of spiritual (and not so spiritual) concepts; contradictory value systems with little in common; insights as different as night and day; and maturity levels that run from helpless infants to those who are wise in their understanding of God.

How can I begin to address the spiritual needs produced by these realities in a single lesson of 30 minutes? I cannot — not in a month, a year, or a decade of sermons.

In the near future we will use differing formats of worship and study on Sunday evenings. The objective will be to address many different spiritual needs in a variety of formats.

Hopefully, this week we can begin projecting the praise songs in the Sunday morning assembly. The numbers will be projected so that you may use the book or the screen.

The Bond Between Love and Obedience

Posted by on April 18, 1999 under Sermons

1 John 5 contains three things. First it contains powerful encouragement. Second, it contains some of the most difficult statements found in the New Testament. Third, it contains some key Christian concepts. There is no way we could address all three this evening.

  1. In 1 John 5:1,2, John emphasizes some key concepts found throughout the book.
    1. Key concept #1: Believing that Jesus is the Christ.
      1. Chapter 2:22 — The antichrists do not believe Jesus is the Christ.
      2. Chapter 3:23 — Believing Jesus is the Christ is a basic commandment, and this faith and obedience results in Christians loving each other.
      3. Chapter 4:2,3 — Believing that Jesus is the Christ is a basic proof that a spirit comes from God.
      4. Chapter 4:15 — Believing that Jesus is the Christ is key evidence that one continually lives in God.
      5. Chapter 5:1 — Believing that Jesus is the Christ is basic evidence that the person is born of God.
    2. Key concept #2: the born of God.
      1. Chapter 2:29 — The born of God practice righteousness.
      2. Chapter 3:9 — The born of God will not practice sin.
      3. Chapter 4:7 — The born of God love.
      4. Chapter 5:4 — The born of God overcome the world.
      5. Chapter 5:18 — The born of God are kept by God.
    3. Concept #3: Love the children of God (Christians love Christians).
      1. Chapter 2:10,11 — Christians loving Christians is essential to if a Christian is to continually live in the light.
      2. Chapter 3:11 — Christians loving Christians is the original message.
      3. Chapter 4:7 — Christians loving Christians is the proof that we belong to God.
      4. Chapter 4:11 — Christians ought to love each other because God loves all of us.
      5. Chapter 4:21 — Christians love Christians because God commanded us to love each other.
    4. Concept #4: Keeping the commandments.
      1. Chapter 2:3 — We know that we know God if we keep the commandments.
      2. Chapter 3:22 — God responds to us because we keep the commandments.
      3. Chapter 3:24 — Keeping the commandments is necessary for there to be mutual indwelling.
      4. Chapter 5:3 — Keeping the commandments is the proof that we love God.
  2. Please focus on some of the basic understandings of Chapter 5.
    1. Understanding #1: “If you love the parent, you love the child” (5:1).
      1. This concept is basic to the meaning of obedience, loving Christians, and inseparable bond.
      2. Understanding obedience:
        1. Obedience is not a matter of making a list of commandments and doing them.
        2. Obedience is not making a deal with God that obligates God.
        3. Because I love my father I am devoted to pleasing him.
        4. Obedience is not a matter of making a deal with God; it’s a matter of being devoted to God.
      3. Christians loving Christians.
        1. We do not love Christians because we are easy to love.
        2. The truth is, none of us are that easy to love.
        3. We love Christians because we love the parent of Christians.
      4. The inseparable link exists between love and obedience.
        1. This is one of the basic truths of “love the parent, love the child.”
        2. Because we love the parent, we love his children.
        3. Because we love the parent, we obey the parent.
        4. It is impossible to love God and refuse to love Christians.
        5. It is impossible to love God and refuse to obey God.
    2. Understanding #2: Keeping God’s commandments is not burdensome (5:3).
      1. The Pharisees were the proof that humans can make obeying God very burdensome.
        1. They are also the proof that this distorts the purposes of God.
        2. They are also the proof that when we do this we deep displease God.
      2. In Matthew 11:28-30, Jesus said, “My yoke is easy, and my load is light.”
        1. Obeying God by surrendering to Jesus destroys burdens.
        2. It rests the soul, not exhausts the soul.
      3. Obedience may not be easy, but it is not burdensome.
        1. The greater our love for God the easier obedience becomes.
        2. When Christianity is by nature burdensome, it is not what Christ gave us.
    3. Understanding #3: It is our faith that gives us victory over the world (5:4).
      1. By our faith, John means that we place our trust in Jesus who is the Christ.
      2. We need to see John’s picture clearly.
        1. His picture is not of a world under the immediate control of God with Satan invading it.
        2. His picture is of a world under the immediate control of evil being invaded by God through Christ.
      3. The person who overcomes the world is the Christian who places his absolute trust in Jesus as the Christ.
  3. Observation: Verses 6-8 are some of the most difficult verses in the New Testament to understand.
    1. John’s point and thought flow are not obvious.
    2. Many serious scholars have come to very different conclusions about the meaning of these verses.
    3. It is not my purpose tonight to examine those conclusions.
  4. Finally, I want you to focus on the assurances.
    1. Assurance #1: God has given Christians eternal life, and that life is found in Jesus Christ (5:11,12).
      1. Please note it does not say that God will give us eternal life.
      2. For every person in Christ, God has given him or her eternal life.
      3. We can chose to forfeit it, but it is ours if we chose to remain in Christ.
    2. Assurance #2: We place our confidence in eternal life (5:13).
      1. It is not a “maybe” proposition.
      2. It is a definite promise.
    3. Assurance #3: God hears our requests (5:15).
      1. The person who loves God and shows his love in devotion through obedience is committed to the will of God.
      2. Any request this person makes will be in full respect of God’s will.
      3. When in surrender to the will of God we make a request, God hears our request and responds to it.
    4. Assurance #4: When Christians pray for God to forgive Christians of mistakes that they have made, God will extend that forgiveness.
      1. There are some sins that produce spiritual death.
      2. There are some sins that do not result in spiritual death.
      3. For those sins, God will hear the prayer for forgiveness of one Christian prayed for another Christian .

Pay special attention to Chapter 5:19. John plainly said that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. The only way we can keep the evil one from touching us is to be born of God. God keeps those who are born of Him from being touched by the evil one. This happens because those born of God place their unquestioning trust in His son, Jesus Christ. God can invade the control of the evil one because He is the true God that has eternal life.

John cautioned them against idolatry. Idolatry replaced the true God with a false god. We need the same caution. We must not replace the true God with any worldly power. All worldly powers come from the evil one, not from God.

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