April 17, 2012

"Meanwhile, the Philistine, with his shield bearer in front of him, kept coming closer to David. He looked David over and saw that he was little more than a boy, glowing with health and handsome, and he despised him. He said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come at me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. “Come here,” he said, “and I’ll give your flesh to the birds and the wild animals!”  I Samuel 17:41-44

Sunday I began my new sermon series entitled "HIMpossibility" and subtitled "What Can I Expect From God"?

This whole idea of shaping realistic expectations toward God is a tough one when we have a God Who can do anything, at any time and in any way He chooses but sometimes chooses not to.

So, the way I decided to approach this important subject is to study some of the great heroes of the Bible who saw God do mighty works in their behalf and see what they expected from God.

Let's begin with David versus Goliath and learn what we can.

From my reading, studying and meditation over this story I have identified three expectations David had of his God when he confronted the giant.

David expected that when God confronted him with a giant it was because He wanted to demonstrate His power over giants.

Second, David expected God to use the giant in front of him to raise up the giant in him.

Third, we learn that God uses the giant to raise up the giant is us so we can raise up giants around us.

If you are facing a giant this morning I hope this will bring you some hope and comfort when you realize how you can expect God to use that giant in your life.

No matter whether that giant is a health issue or a financial issue or a relationship issue or an employment issue - regardless of what form the giant has taken, God will use that giant to accomplish one or more of these holy purposes in your life. That should come as a giant relief for you

Over each of these next three days I will probe deeper into each of these great expectations you can have toward your God! But, for now, thank God that on the other side of your giant and the momentary stress or pain he is causing you will be some giant joy and spiritual growth!

April 16, 2012

“Don’t worry about this Philistine,” David told Saul. “I’ll go fight him!” I Samuel 17:32

Three frogs are sitting on a lily pad. Two of them are thinking about jumping off the pad and into the pond. How many are left?

You are right! Three! Because thinking about jumping is different from jumping! They didn't jump!

Is it harder to fight a giant or to fear a giant?

For forty days or so the soldiers of the army of God had sit and listened to the taunts and rants of this Goliath guy. And every day they heard it and did nothing in response, the harder it became. The longer they stared at him and failed to act, the larger he looked.

There might be a lesson for us! Giants must be faced. The sooner you face your giant the better it will be.

Avoidance is not godly. Problems do not go away because we pretend they don't exist, they only get bigger and badder!

Procrastination doesn't kill giants. Actually, it doesn't kill midgets either!

I remember being bullied on a daily basis by Jim Leslie. Day after day he would pass me in the hallway at school an punch me when I walked by. He would come up behind me and knock the books out from under my arm or talk smack or hit me. I was about 5'6'' and he was about 6'2''. But one day I finally reached the limit of my tolerance and when he hassled me I spun around and punched him in the gut. As I was turning with my hand balled up into a fist I was fully convinced that I would get killed for doing this but I just couldn't take it any longer - if I died I died!

Much to my surprise - and apparently to his as well - he didn't strike back. Instead, he backed away, made a few parting insults and walked away. He never bothered me again! I took a stand and it paid off.

Problems don't solve themselves. Threats don't diminish over time. Giants don't get any smaller. Confrontation never gets easier. So time solves little when you are being threatened or opposed.

April 15, 2012

It was 100 years ago that the unexpected happened.

In the frigid waters of the North Atlantic the "unsinkable" luxury line "Titantic" hit an iceberg and gashed a huge hole in its hull. At 2:20 am on April 15, 1912, it slipped below the surface of the ocean with 1517 souls still aboard.

So unexpected was it that when the news hit the newspapers it was met with stunned disbelief. It seems most had bought into the hype of the "unsinkable" Titanic.

Should they have had such loft expectations of a ship on its maiden voyage? Wouldn't their hopes have been more realistic had the crew and the captain have had the experience of several previous voyages?

History shows the fallacy of expecting something based on speculations and calculations and projections rather than experience. And it certainly calls into question the decision to allow fewer lifeboats than usual. Was that because of the assumption if the ship was not likely to sink they would surely not be needed?

A century of specualtion and second-guessing has only added to the folly of their grand but unfounded expectations.

In the great "faith chapter" of the Bible, Hebrews 11, the phrase "by faith" appears some 18 times by my count. That's another way of saying "they had expectations" of God.

For most of them their expectations were rooted in their experiences with God. They had personally experienced what He could do for them and could easily imagine Him being able to do more.

The chapter records that their expectations were rewarded, some in this life but all in the life to come. God had "something better" planned for them.

God always delivers more than we expect from Him!

Two millenia of "by faith" experiences have proven God REALLY IS unsinkable and you can expect Him to keep your life and your hopes afloat!

Your life won't always be smooth sailing but the One Who steers the ship also controls the sea!

April 14, 2012

What should you expect from a God who knows no limits and can do anything He wants any time and anywhere?

 

 

That is a very important question that deserves some honest, thoughtful and biblical answers. To find some answers we are studying the story of David and Goliath to see if we can learn what he expected of God when he confronted Goliath.

In our last post we discovered that David expected a godly viewpoint. Because of that he saw Goliath differently that all of the others. They saw a giant that was too big to fight and he saw a giant that was too big to miss!

This morning we will see the second expectation David had of God. He expected godly valor as he confronted the giant. David behaved differently toward Goliath because he believed differently about him.

“When the Israelites saw the man, they all ran away from him in great fear.”  V. 24

“As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet him.”  V. 48

Why did David have such courage when the soldiers, who were battle tested, didn’t?

1)       His Experience

“But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock,  I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it.  Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. The LORD who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.” Vv. 34-37

David was confident in His public battle because he had tested God in his private battles. As a shepherd caring for his sheep he had rescued them from the attack of a bear and later when a lion attacked his flock he also killed it.

I am sure that the first time David had to fight a lion or a bear, they seemed like a giant to him. But when he was able to take them on and kill them with the help of the Lord, they became less frightening - and so did the giant!

 

 

God won't allow you to face a giant until you have trusted Him and proven Him against some bears or lions. Confidence in God is gained through winning private victories in your personal battles.

 

 

Let me ask you, “How are your private battles? How are you handling your personal giants – or lions – or bears?”

God expects you to trust Him to win your personal private battles before you trust Him to give you public victories!

2)       His Expectation

“David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the LORD Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the LORD will deliver you into my hands, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head. This very day I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds and the wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel.  All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.” Vv. 44-47

He knew this was the Lord’s battle so he knew that the Lord would give him the victory.

He expected God to win the battle because he knew – he fought for the right principle – he fought for the right purpose and – he fought with spiritual power.

David won a major victory on the public battlefield because he was winning on his private personal battlefield. God was able to help him publicly because David had allowed God to help him privately.

The fact is if you aren’t winning the private personal battles the public battles will eventually expose you and bring you down!

April 13, 2012

"David asked the men standing near him, “What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and removes this disgrace from Israel? Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?” I Samuel 17:26

When David arrived on the scene he saw the same thing that the soldiers saw but he saw it very differently!

THEY LOOKED AT GOLIATH AND SAID, “HE IS TOO BIG TO FIGHT!” DAVID LOOKED AT HIM AND THOUGHT, “HE IS TOO BIG TO MISS!”

I believe that one thing you and I should expect from God when faced by a giant challenge is a GODLY VIEWPOINT!

What does that mean AND how do we get it?

What It Means

If you or I are to respond to a giant in a way that honors God doesn’t it make sense that we should view it from His perspective?

1)       Who to fight – Spiritual Principle

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”  Ephesians 6:12

In life it is important to know which battles to fight. Face it, you can spend so much time and energy fighting little battles that you don't have anything left for the really big ones. David didn't make that mistake.

* Not people – could have been offended by his brothers or by King Saul when they rebuked him and dismissed him and belittled his passion. David knew his battle was not against people.

* Spiritual principles – Goliath was profaning and defying God and causing the army of God to lose heart.

       2)       Why to fight – Spiritual Purpose

^“David said to Saul, “Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him.”  V. 32

God’s people needed to be encouraged and His Name needed to be defended. David's zeal for his God would not allow him to ignore the blasphemous giant.

Something had to give and someone had to go. David knew who to fight and why!

I dream of a church fellowship where the people stand and fight for God and the purposes of His Word. And I dream of a place where the people fight FOR each other and never against each other.

3)       How to fight – Spiritual Power

God’s power met David at his point of preparation and passion. He had been able to slay a lion and then kill a bear in the strength of the Lord when his sheep where attacked by them. Because of his experience with using God's power against his enemies.

David’s strength went against Goliath’s weakness (His sling not Saul’s armor). The courage and competence of David with a slingshot was a secret weapon against the arrogance of Goliath. Because of the giant's giant-sized ego he left himself vulnerable to the pinpoint accuracy of the shepherd's slingshot.

How To Get It

David was a servant and they were soldiers. The servant heart of the shepherd boy allowed him to think differently than the cynical soldiers and to see the giant from a different viewpoint.

David’s focus had been fixed on God while they had been preoccupied by Goliath. That made a difference in how they viewed the situation.

DAVID WAS SUCCESSFUL AGAINST GOLIATH BECAUSE HE HAD GOD’S VIEWPOINT ON THE SITUATION.

He fought for God’s principle and he fought for God’s purpose and he fought in God’s power.

Can I ask you a question, “Do you think you would have fewer disappointments with God if you fought your giants with His viewpoint?”

Don’t you think you should expect God to give you His viewpoint?

Do you possess the heart of a servant?  

Do you focus on Him more than on your giant?

April 12, 2012

^"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us,  to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."  Ephesians 3:20-21

Okay, can we just admit it and get it out there – you have been disappointed with God. Does it help to know that you are in good company?

Consider these surprising quotes from some well regarded people:

"I have my moments of deep discouragement. I have to go to God in prayer with tears in my eyes." - Billy Graham

"I am exhausted crying for help....waiting for my God to help me." - King David (Psalm 69)

"Where is God? Go to Him when your need is desperate and what do you find? A door slammed in your face." - C. S. Lewis

"I have had enough, Lord.....Take my life."  - Elijah

"In my soul, I can't tell you how dark it is....I feel like refusing God." - Mother Teresa

"My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?" - Jesus

"God has no right to treat me like this -- it isn't fair!" - Job

I would take a guess that most, if not all of those people whose quotes were represented in that clip are enjoying Heaven right now and I guarantee you that they are not disappointed!

Let me ask you, “Have you ever disappointed God?” Again, let me ask you, “Have you disappointed God more often than He has disappointed you?”

“Did God quit on you when you disappointed Him?”     “Will you quit on Him?”

Okay, I will go first! I have been disappointed with God.

In order to resolve this faith crisis I had to face some hard options, "Was God insensitive to my need?" or "Was He unable to meet my need" or "Was He unwilling to do so?" or "Were my expectations unrealistic?"

Given those considerations I had to finally conclude that my expectations of God were unrealistic because I just couldn't come to the other conclusions. I know my God cares and I know He is able and I know He is willing.

So, this brings us back to the question, "What should I expect from God?"

That is a HUGE question that will take several weeks to answer. But in the meantime, I leave you with another quote to help keep you from being disappointed with God:

"When I can't trace His hand I can trust His heart." - Charles Spurgeon

April 11, 2012

^"I call with all my heart; answer me, LORD, and I will obey your decrees. I call out to you; save me and I will keep your statutes. I rise before dawn and cry for help; I have put my hope in your word. My eyes stay open through the watches of the night, that I may meditate on your promises. Hear my voice in accordance with your love; preserve my life, LORD, according to your laws. Those who devise wicked schemes are near, but they are far from your law. Yet you are near, LORD, and all your commands are true. Long ago I learned from your statutes that you established them to last forever."  Psalm 119:145-152

Have you ever beem disappointed with God?

It's okay to be honest, we are friends here.

Okay, I will go first! I have been disappointed with God.

I found it to be an extremely gut-wrenching soul-searching experience. In order to resolve this faith crisis I had to face some hard options, "Was God insensitive to my need?" or "Was He unable to meet my need" or "Was He unwilling to do so?" or "Were my expectations unrealistic?"

Given those considerations I had to finally conclude that my expectations of God were unrealistic because I just couldn't come to the other conclusions. I know my God cares and I know He is able and I know He is willing.

So, this brings us back to the question, "What should I expect from God?"

We REALLY need to know some answers, but where should we go?

Between now and the end of May join us for a study of some of the great Biblical heroes and we will learn from them about their expectations of God! I am talking about godly leaders like David, Joshua, Moses, the Three Hebrews, Daniel and the Children of Israel in the wilderness.

The study will get specific with the encounter between David and Goliath, but first, here's a big picture matrix to work with as put together the pieces.

Realistic expectations of God will be consistent with:

God's Word

God will never act in a way that is inconsistent or in violation of His Word. Make sure that your expectations of God are consistent with the truths and teachings of the Bible.

If you want to know what to expect from God, become more familiar with His Word!

You will see that demonstrated in the stories of David, Joshua, Moses, Daniel, et al.

God's Will

Nor can God move contrary to His will or His nature. You should not expect Him to do so.

If you want to know what to expect from God, become familiar with God's will!

Again, you will see that true in these stories of these biblical Heroes!

God's Way

Don't expect God to act in a way that contradicts His Word or His Will or anything incompatible with His nature.

If you are expecting God to respond to your need according to your plan, prepare to be disappointed!

If you want to know what to expect from God learn His ways as Moses did:   "He made known his ways to Moses, his deeds to the people of Israel: The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love." Psalm 103:7-8

Expect God to respond to any and every situation consistent with His Word, according to His Will and in His Way.

Any other expectation is unrealistic and destined for disappointment.