March 2, 2011

"Don’t be misled—you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant. Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit. So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up. Therefore, whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone—especially to those in the family of faith."  Galatians 6:7-10

I remember as a kid how much fun it was to sled down the hill in the Winter snow! There aren't a lot of hills in Indiana but we happened to live atop the highest hill in our little town. All the kids from the neighborhood would come and slide down our hill. When there were a lot of kids sledding the snow would get packed down and become a sheet of solid ice. Wow! How we would fly down that hill! With a running start we could slide down the hill and for another block or two before we would come to a stop.

But then we would have to walk all the way back UP the slippery hill carrying our sleds. Not so easy and not so fun!

To enjoy the easy part and the fun part we had to endure the hard uphill part.

Now that I am older and no longer enjoy sledding, or snow or carrying a sled up a slippery hill in the snow, I have come to understand that life is similar to my boyhood sledding experience. There some easy downhill times and there are some hard uphill climbs. And, when you are a Christian who is trying to live a life that pleases God and impacts others, that is mostly an uphill climb.

As we discovered in our study of Romans 12, we are called to overcome evil with good. Evil is easy and natural like sliding down the hill. Goodness goes against our nature, so it can feel like climbing up a slippery hill.

In the case of the sledding, that maybe happened a few times a year so trekking up the hill was bearable. But the call to goodness is a daily challenge to overcome the sinful nature and obey God. You climb the hill one day and then get up the next morning and do it all over again. It can get tiring, especially as you watch all those who are sliding down the hill and seemingly having fun.

You understand the admonition to "be not weary in well doing". You are aware that doing good all day every day can take its toll. Obviously, if doing good was as easy as doing bad, we would live in a good world instead of an evil one. But we don't.

Have you grown weary from doing the right thing? Have you been tempted to just slide down the hill with everyone else? Perhaps you have been climbing the hill every day and wearing yourself out to always do the right thing and you don't see much of a payoff for all the investment. Maybe that is where you are today.

You have always heard that it pays to do the right thing. You read in your Bible that things that are pleasing to God - and you want to please Him. You know that sinful living, while easier to do, doesn't end well. But resisting evil and doing right is JUST HARD! SOME DAYS IT IS EXHAUSTING. How do you you keep from growing weary while you do the right things?

Paul wrote this portion of Scripture to encourage these believers because he knew they were growing weary. He, of all people, knew what it was to become weary in serving God. So, he encouraged them with the same encouragement he had found for himself.

I will be sharing that with you over the next few posts. I believe you will find it helpful. But, in the meantime, draw upon His strength. Live in the power of His Spirit. Saturate you brain with the promises of God and let them soak into your spirit. Walk by faith not by feelings. And finally, rejoice in Him that He has given you the desire to please Him, because that alone is a gift! God has taken away your bondage to sin and set you free to live for God.

And, as you prepare to climb the hill again today - remember to thank Him for the hill He climbed for you!

March 1, 2011

"Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows."  Galatians 6:7

What if you saw your neighbor out working in his garden and you went out to visit with him and you asked him, "What are you doing?"

He replies, "I am planting my garden!"

"Great!", you reply, "What are you planting?"

"I am planting corn!", he says with excitement.

"Really?" you respond with surprise, "Those are bean seeds you are putting into the ground!"

"No," he insists, "I am planting corn."

"Friend!", you persist, "You may want corn but you are going to get beans because those are bean seeds you are planting!"

He becomes more insistant that he is planting corn, but you know better so you continue to challenge him. As your conversation is beginning a bit heated, he finally blurts out, "Okay! Corn, beans, it doesn't matter! It's all the same!"

You would walk back across your backyard shaking your head wondering about the intelligence or the sanity of your neighbor.

When it comes to planting, the seed you plant is the vegetable that is going to grow. You may, like your neighbor, fool yourself, but you won't fool nature.

This verse reminds you that what you sow into the ground is what you will reap at the harvest.

So, it is with life. What you so into your life and into the life of others is what will be exactly what will be produced.

God knows exactly what seeds you are sowing with you life. If you pretend to be sowing spiritual seed but are actually sowing to your flesh, you may fool yourself and you may fool others, but you will not fool God. When the harvest season comes your foolishness will be revealed.

The very notion that you can fool God is exceedingly foolish. The fact that you would want to fool God is exceedingly sinful.

If you are sowing to the flesh while appearing to be spiritual, you will be exposed when the harvest season reveals the true nature of your deception.

What do you want to harvest? That is the seed you need to sow.

If you want an eternal spiritual harvest, sow spiritual seeds! Sow seeds of truth and sincerity and obedience and love and faithfulness. Good fruit wll be produced from those seeds and that fruit will produce more good fruit! 

Are you planting spiritual seeds?

If not, who are you trying to fool?

February 28, 2011

"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."  II Corinthians 4:16-18

Hope is an incredibly powerful force! You know that! But maybe you don't always know where to look for hope.

Scientists have proven the significance of hope. They have documented that people can live longer without food or water than they can without hope. Perhaps that is true because the spirit is more important that the body!

Paul wrote to these Corinthian Christians to offer some hope to these struggling believers. I want to share that hope with you today just in case you are in short supply.

Where can you look for hope?

Hope In God's Power!

"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day," V. 16

Aging can take a toll on you. It can stir up doubts and anxieties as you see strength and vitality ebb. Illness can do the same. So can suffering.

You are an eternal soul contained within a temporary body. Getting out of bed each morning is a reminder of the that! Aching joints and muscles can be reminders of that! A glance in the mirror can be a reminder of that! The graying hair and the sagging skin remind you that your body is wearing away.

Where is the hope in that?

Paul answers that by reminding you that when the reality of aging causes you to despair, remember a great reality - the power of God that is at work in you! His spiritual power at work within in you is greater than the force of aging, the force of illness, the force of life's pressure, or any other hope-draining challenge you may face!

Are you a believer? Do you know Him as your Savior? Then His power is at work in you! Hope in His power!

Hope In His Promise!

"For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all."  V. 17

Suffering, pain and misery can rob you of your hope! As the long hours meld into long days, your optimism can melt like wax. Maybe that is where you find yourself today.

How can I hold onto hope when life hurts all the time?

In addition to God's power at work in you - which is no small thing! You also have the promises of God - all of them - hundreds of them - that assure you that your celebration will far outlast your suffering!

Find your comfort in His power today and take your hope from His promises for tomorrow!

Hope In His Perspective!

"So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." V. 18 

You know that a glass of water can be seen as half-full or half- empty. Both are true but can result in a different set of emotions and a different set of decisions.

Reality is like that glass of water, it is part awareness and part attitude.

The awareness keeps you in touch with what is happening around you but your attitude determines how you will respond to it. Will you lose hope or will you choose hope! Paul encourages you to be aware of the reality you face but at the same time, be aware of a greater and eternal reality that awaits you! Your attitude toward your present reality and the actions you take will impact your eternal reality.

Hope comes not from avoiding reality but hope comes from believing in a greater reality - a more powerful and eternal reality! You live today because you are hoping for tomorrow - and the tomorrow after that!

There is hope that awaits you today! The hope of His power! The hope of His promise! The hope of His perspective!

February 27, 2011

There is much confusion over that these days. Is evil something that is done by you or to you or is evil something you are? Is it a dark and powerful personal force within you or is it the harmful and hurtful things you do? That confusion contributes to many of our problems in our world today and could be responsible for how evil is on the rise around our world.

If we are going to overcome evil, obviously we must have a clear and actual understanding of what evil is.

And, how we understand evil will determine how we understand good.

In this sermon series we have been defining what it means to Live on Purpose.

Our Purpose Is To Overcome Evil With God

Our Place Is To Discover Our Spiritual Gifts And Serve

Our Purity Is Living In Sincere Love

Our Peace Is Giving Grace, Having Empathy, and Living Humbly

Our Power Is Responding To Evil With Goodness

THE POWER OF EVIL, V. 17

"Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody."

The New York Times reported a study about the diminishing belief in the devil among Americans. Two-thirds of Americans do not believe in the devil as a living entity. In a randomly selected survey of over 1,000 Americans, pollsters asked whether they agreed that Satan is “not a living being, but a symbol of evil.” Sixty-two percent agreed with the statement. That means nearly 149 million Americans believe that Satan has no influence but that Satan is just a symbol of evil. We should know and understand that Satan is real and evil is real and that this is our number 1 enemy as believers in Jesus Christ.

This 12th Chapter of Romans thinks that evil is a problem because it warns us that if we do not overcome it we will be overcome by it. Let’s just do a quick survey of the Scripture:

V. 2 - By nature you are conformed to this world

V.2 - Your evil nature does not know God's will

V. 3 - Your evil nature is conceited

V. 9 - Your evil nature is insincere and loves what is evil

V. 13 - Your evil nature is selfish.

God thinks evil is a problem because He gave the Commandments to define it and then sent Jesus to defeat it and commissioned His Church to destroy it in the power of the Holy Spirit!

The answer to my previous question is that evil is BOTH a noun and a verb.

In other words, I do evil because I have evil in me. I am evil by nature. So are you.

“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” Jeremiah 17:9

In our nature we have a rebellious anti-God, anti-Christ, anti-truth bent that seeks to make everything in life about my desires and my opinions.

Jesus said, “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Do not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.”

Wow! That is pretty radical stuff! Why would Jesus propose such a radical response?

When you hear the radical things Jesus said about evil and when you see the radical action Jesus took you know evil is serious business!

THE PROBLEM OF EVIL, V. 18

"If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone."

You only have to look as far as the origins of evil. Look what happened in Heaven when Lucifer made an evil choice. His relationship with God was shattered eternally and 1/3 of the angels became evil.

You only have to look as far as the early chapters of Genesis when Adam and Eve chose to do evil:

1) They experienced shame

2) Their relationship was strained

3) Their relationship with God suffered

4) Later, one of their sons murdered the other.

5) We inherited their evil nature

6) Every horrendous despicable tragic that that ever happened since are due to this evil.

Figure 1: shows how drastically the actual knowledge of high school students began to drop at an accelerating rate after 1962. David Barton, who did the report notes that the upturn in SAT scores since 1981 is due to the increase in private Christian educational facilities which began to flourish at that time. Statistics have proven that students from private Christian schools showed higher academic achievement and higher test scores.

Figure 2: This graph shows the increase in sexual activity in unmarried teen-age girls after the 1962 Supreme Court decision. It is evident from the figures provided that in the years previous to the removal of prayer the rates remained stable and relatively unchanged. In the post- prayer years the numbers immediately began to soar. The sudden increase on the graph appears as if a great restraining force had suddenly been removed.

Figure 3: Unwed women 15-19 years of age showed a phenomenal increase in the rate of pregnancies after the School Prayer decision. Note that the figure jumps drastically after the Supreme Court’s Roe vs. Wade decision which made abortion legal in the U.S. The United States now has the highest incidence of teen-age motherhood in any Western country.

Figure 4: For the 15-19 and 20-24 age group, the rates of youth suicide remained relatively unchanged during the years from 1946 to the School Prayer decision in 1962. But in the years since, suicides among the same group have increased 253 percent, or an average of 10.5 percent per year.

Figure 5: Stability in the family has also been affected since the 1962 decision. Divorce, single parent families, couples living together but not married, and adultery are areas of family breakdown which have experienced radical growth in recent years. In the graph above, the increase in single parent families (households with only a mother and children) are detailed. Note the dotted line at the bottom, which shows the rate of growth prior to the 1962 decision.

Figure 6: Crime, productivity, and national morality had been on a fairly stable level prior to the 1962 decision, but that is no longer the case. It is obvious that such a quantity of students praying for their nation had a very positive effect on the course that this nation had taken. The rate of violent crime, as shown above, has risen over 330 percent.

What God hates most about evil, besides the fact that it offends His holiness, is how it wrecks relationships and hurts people. Those are the two things He values most!

If I were to ask for a show of hands from anyone who has suffered from a relationship that has been shattered or strained by some form of evil habit or influence I would expect to see a room full of hands. EVIL WRECKS RELATIONSHIPS AND BREAKS GOD’S HEART!

So – do you dare be casual about evil?
 

THE POWER OVER EVIL, Vv. 19-21

"Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."

“All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” Edmund Burke

What is it I should do to overcome evil? How can I stand against evil and stem the tide of evil in an increasingly evil world?

FIRST, REPENT OF YOUR EVIL

What is repentance? Gordon MacDonald helps us to understand with these sobering words: “Repentance is not necessarily repentance for what I have done although it may necessitate that. Repentance is for, more significantly, what is in me as a sinner. I suggest to you that the Bible is teaching us over and over again that in the soul of every person in this room — even in the children — is a volcanic pocket of evil so virile and so full of potential that anyone in this world would probably be capable of destroying the world five times over if all of that evil got out.”

SECOND, BE CLEANSED OF YOUR EVIL AND FILLED WITH HIS SPIRIT

THIRD, LIVE IN HIS LOVE AND HOLY GOODNESS, Vv. 19-21


BECOME PURELY PROACTIVE – STOP REACTING!

One evening a woman was driving home when she noticed a huge truck behind her that was driving uncomfortably close. She stepped on the gas to gain some distance from the truck, but when she sped up the truck did too. The faster she drove, the faster drove the truck.

Now scared, she exited the freeway. But the truck stayed with her. The woman then turned up a main street, hoping to lose her pursuer in traffic. But the truck ran a red light and continued the chase.

Reaching the point of panic, the woman whipped her car into a service station and bolted out of her auto screaming for help. The truck driver sprang from his truck and ran toward her car. Yanking the back door open, the driver pulled out a man hidden in the backseat.

The woman was running from the wrong person. From his high vantage point, the truck driver had spotted a would-be rapist in the woman’s car. The chase was not his effort to harm her but to save her even at the cost of his own safety.

That is how you and I tend to be and it is what makes evil so dangerous. We think that evil is something "OUT THERE". It is those liberals, or those conservatives, or those pro-lifers, or those pro-abortionists, or those Catholics, or those Muslims - anything but us!

So we join good causes and take good stands but evil continues to grow!

The worst evil is the evil within!

BUT - it is an evil you can deal with! It is an evil HE can conquer! You can make the world a less evil place!

Will you?

February 26, 2011

"Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." Romans 12:21

There is a good reason that the writer of Romans admonishes you not to allow yourself to be overcome with evil. Here are three of them:

Lucifer was overcome by evil and lost his exalted place in Heaven:

"How you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! You said in your heart, “I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.” Isaiah 14:12-14

Ever since he became evil he has spread evil like a plague and is totally dedicated to overwhelming the world with evil:

“You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Genesis 3:4-6

Once sin spread to the human race, Adam and Eve, the first parents contaminated the human nature with evil. Since then every person who has ever been born has been overcome by evil. You were born evil. I was born evil. It is our default position. Unless something dramatic is done, all of humanity will be hopelessly overcome by evil.

God sent Jesus, His Perfect Son, conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin - without a sinful nature! That enabled Him to become the sacrifice to bear the penalty for our sins. He Who was Holy absorbed our evil and became evil for us:

"Then the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the Praetorium and gathered the whole company of soldiers around him. They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head. They put a staff in his right hand and knelt in front of him and mocked him. “Hail, king of the Jews!” they said. They spit on him, and took the staff and struck him on the head again and again. After they had mocked him, they took off the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him. " Matthew 27:27-31

These three portraits of evil remind us of how hideous it is. They remind us of how powerful it is. So powerful is it that only God Himself can overcome it. What makes you think you can mess with it and get away with it?

Only the Second Adam could overcome the evil created by the first Adam. He is your only hope to be an overcomer!

February 25, 2011

"Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody"   Romans 12:17

Evil is incredibly powerful. These verses make it clear that evil will overcome you if you do not take deliberate and intentional spiritual action to bring the power of God to bear against the evil in your heart, it will eventually express itself in destructive ways. You never know the powerful impact that even one evil action can have.

Consider this example from recent American history.

How did the removal of voluntary prayer from the schools of the United States affect our nation as a whole? That question has been answered in detail by a research company in Texas which has gathered and tabulated statistics from hundreds of sources relating to the rates of moral decline in America.

Specialty Research Associates, under the direction of David Barton, has released a report entitled America: To Pray or Not to Pray which uses over 100 pages of graphs and statistical analysis to prove that crime, venereal disease, premarital sex, illiteracy, suicide, drug use, public corruption, and other social ills began a dramatic increase after the Engel vs. Vitale Supreme Court decision was made in 1962 which banned school prayer.

Prayer in schools prior to 1962 was utilized in school districts all over the U.S. in many varieties. Some teachers used extemporaneous prayers, simply expressing their thoughts and desires; others implemented structured prayers, such as the Lord’s Prayer or the 23rd Psalm, or others approved by local school boards. New York students prayed each day: “Almighty God, we acknowledge our dependence on Thee and beg Thy blessing over us, our parents, our teachers, and our nation.” It was this simple prayer which came under fire and went to the Supreme Court for the landmark decision.

Says David Barton, “It is impossible to know how many of the 39 million children were involved in daily verbal prayers, but most accounts indicate that a clear majority of the students voluntarily participated in daily school prayer. Is it possible that the prayers that were being offered by these children and their teachers across the nation actually had any measurable, tangible effect?”

Figure 1: The SAT: It was this question that led Barton to uncover the statistical proof that the removal of prayer did indeed take its toll on America. Below are just a few of the charts featured in Barton’s report, with a brief explanation of each: (Scholastic Aptitude Test) is an academic test that measures the developed verbal and math reasoning of a student exiting from high school or some similar type of learning facility. The results of these tests are commonly used by colleges and universities to indicate the strength of a student’s academic preparation and his potential for success on the college level.

Figure 1 shows how drastically the actual knowledge of high school students began to drop at an accelerating rate after 1962. Barton notes in his report that the upturn in SAT scores since 1981 is due to the increase in private Christian educational facilities which began to flourish at that time. Statistics have proven that students from private Christian schools showed higher academic achievement and higher test scores.

Figure 2: This graph shows the increase in sexual activity in unmarried teen-age girls after the 1962 Supreme Court decision. It is evident from the figures provided that in the years previous to the removal of prayer the rates remained stable and relatively unchanged. In the post- prayer years the numbers immediately began to soar. The sudden increase on the graph appears as if a great restraining force had suddenly been removed.

Figure 3: Unwed women 15-19 years of age showed a phenomenal increase in the rate of pregnancies after the School Prayer decision. Note that the figure jumps drastically after the Supreme Court’s Roe vs. Wade decision which made abortion legal in the U.S. The United States now has the highest incidence of teen-age motherhood in any Western country.

Figure 4: For the 15-19 and 20-24 age group, the rates of youth suicide remained relatively unchanged during the years from 1946 to the School Prayer decision in 1962. But in the years since, suicides among the same group have increased 253 percent, or an average of 10.5 percent per year.

Figure 5: Stability in the family has also been affected since the 1962 decision. Divorce, single parent families, couples living together but not married, and adultery are areas of family breakdown which have experienced radical growth in recent years. In the graph above, the increase in single parent families (households with only a mother and children) are detailed. Note the dotted line at the bottom, which shows the rate of growth prior to the 1962 decision.

Figure 6: Crime, productivity, and national morality had been on a fairly stable level prior to the 1962 decision, but that is no longer the case. It is obvious that such a quantity of students praying for their nation had a very positive effect on the course that this nation had taken. The rate of violent crime, as shown above, has risen over 330 percent.

You say, "I agree that this is terrible. This evil decision to ban praying in school has exponentially spread throughout our culture with devastating moral effects. But what can I do about that? I can't change the law."

That is true, but the point is this. You must realize the power of evil. And, the evil you should be most concerned about is the evil within you. Repent of it immediately and ask God to cleanse you with the blood of Jesus and fill you with the Holy Spirit.

Overcome evil with God!

February 24, 2011

"Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody."  Romans 12:17

Evil is easy to recognize in others.

But when it comes to owning up to the evil in you, that is a little tougher. You have your weak areas and your struggles, but you are not really evil. Right?

Let's see what Jesus has to say.

"You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell." Matthew 5:21-22

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart." Matthew 5:27-28

Would you admit that any person who would commit a murder is an evil person? Certainly you would admit that murder is an evil deed.

Well, Jesus said if you have ever been angry at another person you have an evil in you that is capable of murdering someone.

And He is also saying that if you have ever lusted for a woman, that indicates you have a evil that is capable of committing adultery.

So, getting angry or lusting after a woman indicate an inner evil resident within you. Are you evil? If you have done either or both of these then you have evil in you. Yes, you.

In this very chapter evil is defined and identified.

In verse one, evil is refusing to surrender spiritually to God.

Verse two identifies evil as being conformed to the world.

The third through eighth verses indicates evil is using your gifts for yourself rather than serving others. Or, it is not using them at all.

Verse 9 mentions embracing evil as something evil.

Verse 10 indicates that self-centered love is evil.

The rest of the chapter reveals that being overcome by evil is evidence of evil within you. Refusing to do the good thing or the right thing or the godly thing opens the door for evil in your life.

Then the question becomes, "What am I going to with that evil?"

Will you tolerate it? Will you ignore it and hope it goes away?

Or, will you confess it and repent of it and resist it every day? Admit that you are evil and ask God to cleanse it out of you by His blood and His Spirit.