Fighting for My Pea Patch

Job 1:8 says, “And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?”

Everything was going great for Job.  He was prospering in every aspect of his life.  He had family, friends and fellowship with God.  Then, all of a sudden, seemingly out of nowhere, trouble came and Job lost his livestock, his loved ones, and he nearly lost his life.

Job had no idea, that far beyond his mortal view, God was using his life to defeat Satan.  For whatever reason, God didn’t choose to give Job advance notice that certain catastrophic events were about to take place in his life.  God didn’t fore-warn Job that he was going to pay a hefty price for being a servant.

All of Job’s friends thought he was doing something wrong, that he had some deep, dark hidden secret sin in his life.  Even his own wife said, “Job, why don’t you just curse God and die?”  But through it all, Job kept his testimony and maintained his integrity.  I think, in the depths of my soul, Job understood that it is easy to lose some things you can’t get back.  I believe that is why the Bible records for us that Job “was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil.”

Sometimes when I see my brothers and sisters in Christ going through hard times in their lives, when I see some that are hurting or facing some major trial in their lives, I often ask myself, “I wonder if the LORD is pointing at them and saying, ‘Satan, have you considered my servant Israel?”, or “Have you considered my servant Allan, or my servant Brittany?”

Friends, the next time trouble comes your way, the next time heartache comes your way, or disappointment comes your way – or maybe even failure – or the odds seem to be against you, just remember, GOD MIGHT BE POINTING AT YOU!

I don’t know if y’all realize just what a difficult task Nehemiah took on in rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem.  Understand now just who Nehemiah is:

• He is not a carpenter or a brick mason;
• He is not an Engineer;
• He is not an independent contractor.

At the end of Nehemiah Chapter 1, Nehemiah states what his position was, “For I was the King’s cupbearer.”  Now folks, this was a serious job Nehemiah had.   It was a job of High Rank and of High Risk.  If you’ve ever seen a movie that was set in this era, then you are probably familiar with this position – they were the food taster and they were the wine taster.

There were many insurrections, and many uprisings, and many times they would get to the cooks and persuade them to poison the King’s food or his drink in an attempt to kill the king.  So the role of the cupbearer was to taste the food and taste the wine – so this was a very trusted position.  So with this position, it was a one of High Rank and High Risks – but it also came with High Respectability.  The King himself respected you – it was a very trustworthy position.  So Nehemiah and King Artaxerses were very, very close and we learn this by studying Nehemiah.

We learn in chapter 1 that Nehemiah learns that the walls of Jerusalem still laid in waste nearly 100 years after it had fallen and there was no one to rebuild them.

• The city was in disarray,
• The people were running around like sheep without a shepherd;
• And in fact, they had become a reproach to God.

And this burdened Nehemiah’s heart greatly.  God began to burden Nehemiah’s heart about this and he was in such a position, he knew that he couldn’t go without the permission of the King.  And apparently, Nehemiah wore his feelings on his sleeve, because the king looked at him and knew something was wrong.

So to paraphrase this, the King said to Nehemiah, “What’s wrong?” and Nehemiah said, “King, my home city lays in ruins and the gates thereof are burned with fire.  I would like to go there and rebuild the walls of my hometown, and I would like to also rebuild the people there as well.”

Now here’s what I really like about this – and God writes the best stories doesn’t He – because not only did the King allow Nehemiah to go to Jerusalem and rebuild the walls, but he also gave him the resources to do it!  Now that is Shameless Audacity isn’t it?

Nehemiah had a definite purpose in the will of God.  And folks, listen to me, if you are reading this, YOU are a child of God, whether you realize it not; whether you’ve lived up to your full potential or not.  God has a definite purpose for your life.  God has set you and I apart for a definite purpose – whether that purpose is to sing a solo, or sing in a choir, or to preach the Gospel message or teach a Sunday School class, or to work in the kitchen or clean the toilets – no matter what it is – GOD HAS A PURPOSE FOR ALL OF OUR LIVES IN THE UP-BUILDING OF HIS KINGDOM!

But, with every Divine Purpose – rest assure there will be Opposition.  In fact, one of the sure fired ways you can tell that if are going in the right direction is the fact that you have Opposition in the way!  Rest assured tonight that as soon as you decide to do something for God and you begin to move forward and act on it THERE WILL BE OPPOSITION – and that brings us to our text in Nehemiah Chapter 4, beginning in verse 1:

“But it came to pass, that when Sanballat heard that we builded the wall, he was wroth, and took great indignation, and mocked the Jews. ² And he spake before his brethren and the army of Samaria, and said, What do these feeble Jews? will they fortify themselves? will they sacrifice? will they make an end in a day? will they revive the stones out of the heaps of the rubbish which are burned?”

What Sanballat was saying here was, “What do they think they’re doing?  They are trying to do something that is impossible!”

Now God says it CAN – But the world says it can’t!

God said “Nehemiah, I want YOU to rebuild the walls,” – but notice with me

OPPOSITION CAME

It came from Outside

And any time you try to do something for God, you can rest assured there will be opposition from the Outside.

Listen, Satan is not going to sit back tonight and let you do something great for God without trying to attack you, and destroy you – Hey, he is a “roaring lion roaming about seeking whom he may devour.”

Folks, the devil is going to do everything he can to destroy those who are trying to do the right thing.

Verse 3 goes on and Tobiah the Ammonite says, “Yea, I know what you’re talking about.  Even if they build the walls, they’ll be so shabbily built that even if a fox walks upon them, they will come crumbling down.”

Isn’t that just like the world?  They look at the work you are trying to do for God, the ministry you are trying to grow, the people you are trying to reach and they will say – “Well, let him go ahead and do it, because no matter what he does, it ain’t ever gonna amount to much!”

And that is what the devil wants to do, he wants to put a shred of doubt in you and get you to thinking that it just doesn’t matter.  But friends hear me well – IT DOES MATTER, and what you do for the upbuilding of God’s kingdom MATTERS!

The devil is going to come and try to destroy, BUT “GREATER IS HE THAT IS IN ME THAN HE THAT IS IN THE WORLD!”

So what does Nehemiah do?  Well, we learn in verse 4 that he prays for his enemies.  Now doesn’t the Bible say that you and I are to “pray for those that despitefully use you?”

• When’s the last time you prayed for someone that cussed you out?
• When’s the last time you prayed for someone that slammed a door in your face?

Not only was there Opposition on the outside, but in verse 10:

There was Opposition from the Inside.

Verse 10 says, “And Judah said, the strength of the bearers of burdens is                 decayed, and there is much rubbish; so that we are not able to build the wall.”

Now these are the very people that should have been coming to Nehemaih says, “Let’s go Nehemiah, we can do this.  Let’s push on!”  But, instead, they are saying the work can’t be done.

• Who does Nehemiah think he is? He’s not a Brick Mason;
• He’s not an Engineer;
• We can’t build this wall with all the pressure we’re getting from the community;
• You can’t be a preacher – you didn’t go to college;
• You can’t be a preacher – you’ve had failure in your life;
• You can’t help others with their problems, you’ve had to many problems of your own.

Folks, listen to me for a minute, and if you don’t get anything else I say here, please don’t miss this:  If God only used the people that deserved to be used – NOBODY WOULD BE USED because:

• “THERE ARE NONE RIGHTEOUS – NO NOT ONE.”
• “FOR ALL HAVE SINNED AND COME SHORT OF THE GLORY OF GOD”
• “ALL OF OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS IS AS FILTHY RAGS.”

99.5 percent of the issues and problems in the church don’t come from the outside – they come from somebody on the INSIDE.  I just think it will be a good day for the church when you and I can begin identifying the dirty, rotten, filthy sin in our own lives as quickly as we identify it in everybody else’s life.

So Nehemiah, rather than retaliating against the opposers, he prayed for them and he said, “God, now this is not MY battle – it is YOUR battle, so I need YOU to take care of the Opposing Forces.”

In verse 9 Nehemiah says, “We prayed unto our God, and set a watch against them day and night.”

You know what Nehemiah was saying?  He was saying, “God, we’re gonna continue to work like it depends on us – BUT we’re gonna Pray like it depends on YOU!”

Not only did Nehemiah pray for them, but he also HAD A PLAN.  Verse 13-14, “Therefore set I in the lower places behind the wall, and on the higher places, I even set the people after their families with their swords, their spears, and their bows. 14 And I looked, and rose up, and said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, Be not ye afraid of them: remember the Lord, which is great and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives, and your houses.”

Nehemiah was saying, “I don’t care what comes.  The opposition may come from the outside or it may come from the inside – I DON’T CARE – but we ARE GOING TO REBUILD THIS WALL.”

It reminds me of what Jesus told Peter, “Upon this ROCK I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it.”

Now I don’t know about you – but I want to be on the winning team Amen!  Nehemiah had a plan – he told them what to do, and we have a wonderful outline in verse 14:

He said, “We’re gonna build this wall, and when Opposition comes:

DO NOT FEAR – “Be not ye afraid of them”

• Yes they’re gonna come at you;
• Yes they’re gonna look at you like you’re crazy;
• Yes they are gonna shrug their shoulders at you;
• Yes they’re gonna say you’ll never amount to anything;
• Yes they are gonna say you’ll never make it

But praise God, you don’t have to be afraid of them – God has you in the place to rebuild the walls of your life, so why not just determine right now that I’m gonna build my section of wall one brick at a time!  DON’T BE AFRAID!

I’m gonna tell you folks, fear only comes from the devil, because the Bible says that God “doesn’t give the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”

Fear comes from the devil – it does not come from God.  But notice in our Scripture that from the youngest to the oldest, they all began to rebuild their section of wall – WHY?  Because they did not have to be afraid!

If God says it’s going to be done – then it’s going to be done!

• There are some of you that are completing courses and you know God is calling you to do something – YOU DO NOT NEED TO FEAR!
• Some of you have just begun the process of quitting and addiction, and you are on shaky ground and feel like you can’t do this – YOU DON’T NEED TO FEAR!

FEAR IS SIMPLY FALSE EVIDENCE APPEARING REAL.

First he said, Don’t be afraid!, Second he says,

DON’T FORGET – “Remember the Lord, which is great and terrible.”

Nehemiah is saying, “You don’t have to fear, but you can look back on your life and REMEMBER how God has taken care of you.”

Nehemiah is saying,

• “Yes, the walls are in shambles,”
• Yes, they’ve been that way a long time.”
• “Yes, the task seems daunting,”
• “Yes it seems overwhelming,”
• But, You REMEMBER how daunting it was for our ancestors as they faced the Red Sea – But God made a way for them.”
• REMEMBER how they got hungry in the Wilderness, but God provided Manna from Heaven;
• REMEMBER how they were thirsty, and how God provided water out of the rocks.”
• Remember when little David went out to face that Giant Goliath – It seemed like and impossible task – BUT GOD AMEN!!!!!

REMEMBER THE LORD!

And can I say with confidence:

• Yes, many of your lives are in shambles,
• Yes, the walls lieth waste and the gates thereof are burned with fire;
• Yes this seems like an impossible, daunting task ahead of you!

BUT REMEMBER THE LORD:

So folks, “Be not afraid of them, REMEMBER THE LORD!

Folks, If God can do it for them, let’s remember that He can do for YOU!

Nehemiah said Don’t Fear and Don’t Forget, but finally he said:

DON’T GO DOWN WITHOUT A FIGHT.  “Fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives and your houses.”

The reason some have not been blessed is because you’re not fighting hard enough.

I’m just gonna tell you, there’s some things worth fighting for.

• Hey, my pastor is worth fighting for;
• My children, they are worth fighting for;
• My grandchildren are worth fighting for;
• My wife Kim is worth fighting for.

Don’t Be Afraid, Don’t Forget and Don’t go down without a Fight!

Let me get conclude with this:

In 52 days, in spite of the opposition from the outside from Sanballat, and Tobiah, and Gesham, and inspite of the opposition from Judah on the inside, and in spite of the fact that this was such a daunting, seemingly impossible task – Nehemiah and the people of God rebuilt the walls!

What can you do in 52 days?

• Can you repair the fragments of your life?
• Can you repair your broken marriage?
• Can you repair the relationship with your parents or your children?
• Can you turn your world upside down?

What is worth fighting for to you?

In II Samuel 23, and verse 9 and 10, the Bible says, “And after him was Eleazar the son of Dodo the Ahohite, one of the three mighty men with David, when they defied the Philistines that were there gathered together to battle, and the men of Israel were gone away: ¹⁰ He arose, and smote the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand clave unto the sword: and the Lord wrought a great victory that day; and the people returned after him only to spoil.”

Here in II Samuel 23, we have some of the last words of King David.  Now, we are not sure if these were in fact his last words, or if this were his last recorded words before he died.  But either way, the things that David has to say here are important to him.

So, as David reminisces here in II Samuel 23, as he begins to remember, he begins to recall the many exploits of his Mighty Men.   Now, David had many soldiers, many that were loyal to him, many that had accomplished great feats on the fields of battle.  But, in this chapter, David is going to narrow that down to 30 of those men, and really, he’s going to specifically focus on 3 of those Mighty Men, men that David referred to as “The Chief among the Captains.”

These are the men that stood out in David’s mind, the men that he wanted to remember before he died.  David wanted everybody to know how he felt about these men.  And as we read the chapter, we get down to verse 8, and we are introduced to the first of these 3:

• Adino, the Ezrite – this is a fellow that drew his spear and slew 800 of the enemy of God at 1 time.
• In Verses 9, 10, there is Eleazar the Ahohite – but we will come back to him, as he is the focus of the message.
• In verse 11, Shammah, the Hararite – who stood against the Philistines when everybody else ran away and the LORD wrought a great victory.

I want focus on verses 9 and 10 and give you 4 things that caught my mind as I studied this Mighty Man Eleazar, a man who was faithful, a man who was loyal to his king, notice with me first of all:

THE PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY

You see, as you read this passage of Scripture, we find apparently what happened is King David, and these 3 Mighty Men, and the others mentioned here, go into battle against the Philistines.  Right in the heat of the battle, everybody turns and runs away.  The end of verse 9 says, “and the men of Israel had gone away.” They fled – they ran – they retreated!

Now, they either left Eleazar by himself, or maybe the other 2 stayed with him – we don’t know for certain, as Eleazar is the only one mentioned in these two verses.

He was left alone to fight the entire army of the Philistines.  Why do you think he didn’t run?  When everybody else turned and ran away, why do you think he didn’t run with them?  I think he didn’t run because he understood his Personal Responsibility.

You see, every one of us have some personal responsibilities in our lives; some things in our lives that no one else can do for us – they are our Personal Responsibility:

• If you are married, you have a Personal Responsibility to your Spouse. As a husband, it is my responsibility to take care of my wife (not my husband – my wife) and to love her.  That is your responsibility – no one else is supposed to do that for you.

And no matter what other husbands do, or do not do, that does not change MY PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY.

• If you are a parent, or a grandparent, you have a responsibility to care for those children that God has put in your life, you are to love them, to care for them, and to nurture them. It is not the communities responsibility, or the school’s responsibility – it is MY personal Responsibility.

And no matter what other fathers do, or fail to do, that does not change my Personal Responsibility to my children and my grandchildren.

• If you are a Christian, you have some personal responsibilities to your Church:
  • We have the responsibility to pray for our church, for our leaders, for our pastor and for one another;
  • We have the responsibility to be faithful – with our time, talents and tithes;
  • We have a responsibility to reach the lost for Christ. It is not the Pastor’s responsibility – it is all of our responsibility.

And no matter what other members of the church do or do not do, no matter what other Christians do or do not do, that does not change my Personal Responsibility to my church.

I believe Eleazar was a good man, a good soldier, a good husband and a good father because he understood he had a Personal Responsibility.  You see, it didn’t matter what the rest of Israel did that day – it didn’t change Eleazar’s Personal Responsibility.

Eleazar knew that if he survived the battle, he was gonna have to stand before his king.  So he stayed in the battle; he stayed faithful to the fight; he stayed in there when the going got tough.

I can almost picture this battle in my mind.  I can see Eleazar standing there in the thick of battle, watching all the others run away – I can imagine he had a few thoughts and choice words about them!  I can’t even fathom what was going through his head when he watched everybody run away.  It would have been easy for him to run with them, I mean, who would have held it against him?

What’s really amazing to me is that Eleazar was just an ordinary guy, just like everybody that ran away, yet he made a decision to do an extraordinary deed – because he had a Personal Responsibility to his king.  It didn’t matter to him what everybody else was doing – he had a Personal Responsibility.  But the 2^nd thing I see:

THE PAINFUL REALITY

So, here is Eleazar – he’s swinging his sword; he’s slashing and thrusting; hacking and whacking.  He is giving this fight everything that he has.  And notice what verse 10 says, “He arose, and smote the Philistines until his hand was weary . . .”

He got tired.  Listen, you hold a big shield and sword and sling them around for a while – you’re gonna get weary!  Every time he would kill one of the enemies of God, it seemed two more would pop up.  It seemed like there was no end to the battle.  And don’t miss this though:

• He was doing what was right;
• He was being faithful.

But the Painful Reality is that even when you are doing the right things; even when you are giving all you’ve got, there are times when you are going to get weary!

And when we get weary, that is when we need to be careful, because Satan will come in and get us.  And folks, we can get weary doing all the right things! We can get weary in well doing!

You know one of the bad things about getting older?  You see, I am still as excited as I’ve ever been – and maybe even more so – BUT, I cannot physically express that excitement like I once could – my body is getting weary.  And we can get weary in well doing – Eleazar did.  He was doing the right things for the right reasons and he got weary.

Why do you think he got weary? I think there are a couple of reasons:

• Because of the number of the enemy. There were a lot of them.  He would kill them, and they’d just kept coming.
• Because there was no one else to fight the enemy with him – he was all alone Truth is, if the Israelites would stayed with him in the battle, none of them would have gotten as weary.

Listen, sometimes when we get weary, sometimes when we get discouraged, sometimes when we get overwhelmed, it’s because of the number of the enemy.  And sometimes no matter how hard we fight, no matter how right we are, the battles just keep coming.  Some days, we just get weary!

Sadly, sometimes when we get weary, we look around and see there is so much to do, and so few willing to help.  Nobody was helping Eleazar – they all ran off.  So Eleazar got weary.

You know, Eleazar could have dropped his sword when he got weary and ran away – and NOBODY would have said a thing about it, after all, he stayed in the battle longer than anybody else.  He could have done what they did and just ran away.  But that’s not what he did.

Instead, verse 10 says, “he clave to his sword . . .” That word clave means “to get a better grip,” “To grip it a little tighter.”

Here he is fighting the Philistines with everything in him, his buddies have all run off, he’s getting weary – and he can either throw down his sword and run away – or he can get a better grip and say “God, I am here for the duration – live or die, sink or swim, I’m here till it’s over!”

The Painful reality was, his hands got tired, they got weary – but let me show you:

THE PHENOMENAL RENEWAL

Sometimes, I think God is waiting for a point in the battle to see if we really mean business for God; to see if we are really serious about serving him; to see if He can count on us.

I believe many Christians have given up the fight just as God was about to send a great victory their way.  They threw down their swords.

But, I am glad the Bible doesn’t say that about Eleazar.  His hands clave to that sword, he got a better grip.  And when he did that, he was making a statement, “God, I’m not going anywhere; I’m gonna fight to my last breathe.”

Illustration:  I played baseball in school, and during the 9^th inning, whenever it was time to bat, and there were runners on base, the coach would say, “Now don’t try to hit a home run, just choke up on the bat – get a better grip – get a hit, get on base, keep the game moving forward.”

You know what, I believe as Christians, rather than worrying about hitting homeruns all the time, maybe we should just think about getting a better grip on the “Sword” and be faithful.

You know what husbands, your wives don’t need you to be a Fabio – they need you to be faithful.  Our kids don’t need us to be superman – they just need us to be faithful.

Now, after Eleazar had been in the fight, he got weary – but rather than throw down his sword, he got a better grip and made up his mind he was going to be faithful.  And because he did – “The LORD wrought a great victory that day.”

That is the Phenomenal Renewal. That is God’s way of reminding us that it is Him that brings the victory.

THE PROPER RECOGNITION

Now this brings us to the final point.  Notice it doesn’t say that Eleazar wrought a great victory, or King David wrought a great victory.  It says, “The LORD wrought a great victory that day.”  Eleazar knew that it was God that gave the victory.

I pray that everyone of us – when we get in the battle, when we’re sticking to our responsibilities, and we get weary, I pray that God gives us the strength to get a better grip, and when the last battle has been fought, I pray we will be able to say, “To God be the glory, for great things He has done.”

Give Him the PROPER RECOGNITION.

I like Eleazar, just a regular ole guy that wanted to be faithful to his king.  And you know what:

• I want to be faithful to my King;
• I want to be faithful to my Lord and Savior;
• I want to be faithful to my Wife, to my family;
• I want to be faithful to my Church;
• I want to be a Mighty Man for God!

 

 

One of my favorite books in the Bible is the Book of Nehemiah.  I think I like it so much because Nehemiah was just an ordinary guy who did for God what nobody else could do for 100 years – he rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem – and he did it in 52 days!

In Nehemiah chapter 4, beginning in verse 14:

“And I looked, and rose up, and said unto the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, (Now, if you are in the habit of underlining things in your Bible, the next phrase is one of those things that I would underline) BE NOT AFRAID OF THEM:  REMEMBER THE LORD, which is great and terrible (That word terrible here is translated to mean AWESOME.  Our God is Great and Awesome!), and fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives, and your houses.

• We are talking about your homes here;
• We are talking about fighting for your families; 

¹⁵ And it came to pass, when our enemies heard that it was known unto us, and God had brought their counsel to nought (That’s another good place to underline), that we returned all of us to the wall, every one unto his work.”

Verse 15 finishes with these words – “EVERY ONE UNTO HIS WORK:“

• Young or old;
• Rich or poor;
• Male or female;
• Educated or uneducated.

Every single person had a job to do.  Every single person had an assignment from Jehovah God!  Every single person had a purpose, a mission to fulfill – IN THEIR GENERATION.

• I cannot accomplish anything in my Father’s generation – that is in the past;
• I cannot accomplish anything in my grandchildren’s generation – that’s in the future;
• I can only accomplish the work of God in my generation- HERE AND NOW!

The only generation that I can affect for God is my generation.  And folks, I determined long ago that in my generation, I am going to serve the Lord with the best that I have in me BY HIS PERFECT WILL.

What I want you to understand with me is that every one has a work:

• EVERY WOMAN;
• EVERY MAN;
• EVERY CHILD

“Every one unto his work!”

And notice with me where it started with Nehemiah:

• It started with the family;
• It started with the home.

“. . . and fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives, and your houses.”

• You can forget fighting the battles against evil IF you can’t win the battle in your home;
• You can forget fighting the opposition, if you can’t win the battle in your home;
• You can forget building any walls, IF you can’t win the battle in your home!

And Nehemiah understood this and he said, “If we’re going to build this wall, everybodies got to build in front of your own house.”  And that’s how he assigned everybody “IN FRONT OF THEIR OWN HOUSE.”

• YOU build that section of wall;
• RIGHT where your family lives;
• And Fight for your wives;
• And fight for your sons;
• And fight for your daughters;
• And fight for your homes.

Folks, I’m going to tell you what is wrong with America, and what’s wrong with our churches and what’s wrong with OUR church:

We’ve tried to do all this stuff for the world, and we’ve tried to do all this stuff for the church – AND WE HAVEN’T BUILT OUR HOMES!

Homes are falling apart and Marriages are crumbling – and folks, that’s why America is falling apart.  As a society, we have even tried to redefine the family and the home.

And as much as we’d like to blame our government for the problem, I will tell you right now:

• The problem is not in the White House or in the state house;
• The problem is in our house!

I will tell you today that there is no Bill that’s going to pass Congress and there’s no Order going to come from the Supreme Court that’s going to fix the problem.  The only thing that will FIX the problem is when you and I “fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives, and your houses.” You see folks, the problem didn’t start in Congress and it didn’t start in the Supreme Court – it started in the HOME!  It started in our FAMILIES!

Nehemiah understood that if we don’t get the family right; if we don’t get the home right; we can forget building the walls for God!  So Nehemiah says to the people:

• Get your homes right;
• Get your families right;
• Fight for your brethren;
• Fight for you sons;
• Fight for your daughters;
• Fight for your wives;
• Fight for your homes!

Folks, before we start trying to fix the politics in this country, and before we can fix the schools in our country, before we can begin to fix EVERYBODY ELSE’S problems, we’ve got to get things right in our own houses.

The reason that the walls were built in 52 days after lying in waste for over 100 years, and the reason the testimony that the walls were rebuilt went out all over the world, and the reason this is recorded for you and I in the WORD of God is because EVERY MAN FOUGHT FOR HIS FAMILY!

• They fought for their brethren;
• They fought for their sons;
• They fought for their daughters;
• They fought for their wives;
• They fought for their homes!

Last night, we completed our small group study on “Draw the Circle” by Matt Batterson.  One of my greatest personal takeaways from the study came in Lesson 38 entitled “CLIMB THE WATCH TOWER.”  This was in reference to the vantage point of the watchman.  It related how answered prayers give us a vantage point.

One of the references that really struck me, was a point that I shared with our church family.  It came from Josh chapter 4:

“And it came to pass, when all the people were clean passed over Jordan, that the Lord spake unto Joshua, saying,  ² Take you twelve men out of the people, out of every tribe a man, ³ And command ye them, saying, Take you hence out of the midst of Jordan, out of the place where the priests’ feet stood firm, twelve stones, and ye shall carry them over with you, and leave them in the lodging place, where ye shall lodge this night. ⁴ Then Joshua called the twelve men, whom he had prepared of the children of Israel, out of every tribe a man: ⁵ And Joshua said unto them, Pass over before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of Jordan, and take you up every man of you a stone upon his shoulder, according unto the number of the tribes of the children of Israel: ⁶ That this may be a sign among you, that when your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What mean ye by these stones? ⁷ Then ye shall answer them, That the waters of Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it passed over Jordan, the waters of Jordan were cut off: and these stones shall be for a memorial unto the children of Israel for ever. ⁸ And the children of Israel did so as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones out of the midst of Jordan, as the Lord spake unto Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, and carried them over with them unto the place where they lodged, and laid them down there. ⁹ And Joshua set up twelve stones in the midst of Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests which bare the ark of the covenant stood: and they are there unto this day. ¹⁰ For the priests which bare the ark stood in the midst of Jordan, until everything was finished that the Lord commanded Joshua to speak unto the people, according to all that Moses commanded Joshua: and the people hasted and passed over. ¹¹ And it came to pass, when all the people were clean passed over, that the ark of the Lord passed over, and the priests, in the presence of the people. ¹² And the children of Reuben, and the children of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh, passed over armed before the children of Israel, as Moses spake unto them: ¹³ About forty thousand prepared for war passed over before the Lordunto battle, to the plains of Jericho. ¹⁴ On that day the Lord magnified Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they feared him, as they feared Moses, all the days of his life. ¹⁵ And the Lord spake unto Joshua, saying,  ¹⁶ Command the priests that bear the ark of the testimony, that they come up out of Jordan. ¹⁷ Joshua therefore commanded the priests, saying, Come ye up out of Jordan.  ¹⁸ And it came to pass, when the priests that bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord were come up out of the midst of Jordan, and the soles of the priests’ feet were lifted up unto the dry land, that the waters of Jordan returned unto their place, and flowed over all his banks, as they did before. ¹⁹ And the people came up out of Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and encamped in Gilgal, in the east border of Jericho.  ²⁰ And those twelve stones, which they took out of Jordan, did Joshua pitch in Gilgal.²¹ And he spake unto the children of Israel, saying, When your children shall ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What mean these stones? ²² Then ye shall let your children know, saying, Israel came over this Jordan on dry land. ²³ For the Lord your God dried up the waters of Jordan from before you, until ye were passed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red sea, which he dried up from before us, until we were gone over: ²⁴ That all the people of the earth might know the hand of the Lord, that it is mighty: that ye might fear the Lord your God for ever.”

Joshua has just lead the children of Israel across the Jordan River into the Promised Land after 40 years of wandering in the wilderness.  Joshua says, “Let’s erect a monument, a memorial for the glory of God. Let’s take these stones and set them up. There is a generation coming up behind us who didn’t see what the Lord did because they weren’t here, but they need to know about it. They need to know that God is the same yesterday, today and forever. So when they see this memorial—these stones—it will make them ask the question, ‘What does this mean?’ When your children ask that question, it is going to give you an opportunity to tell them that God has done something great in this place and that what God has done before, He is able to do again.”

The same is true for our ministry.  God has done (and is doing) some things that some of our children didn’t see; some of our future members didn’t see – but, they need to know what God did.  And they also need to know that if God could do it then – He can do it now.

“Well brother Joe, what does this stone mean?”  “Oh, that’s where God answered my pastors prayer for 15 years that he and I would one day be serving in the ministry together.”

“Well, what does this stone mean?”  “Oh, that one is where we prayed for ZERO rent, and God laid it on someone’s heart to donate 6.8 acres to the church.”

“And what does this stone mean?”  “That one is where God gave a precious little baby girl to a family we have been praying several years for.”

“What does this one mean?”  “That’s where one of our family members with stage 3 cancer was declared cancer free.”

Folks, God is doing a great work in our church, and in churches and ministries all around the world.  Many have not seen what God did, so it is important for you and I to build a memorial, a lasting legacy, so that generations to come will know what God did – and if He could do it for us – He can do it for them!

 

 

 

 

 

Someone once asked me, if I could only have one book of the Bible, which one would I take?  Though I would certainly hate to part with the Gospel of John, or even the Psalms,  I would have to say, I would take the Book of Romans.

The theme of the Book of Romans is the Righteousness of God.  It is divided by sections:

• The Righteousness Required by God
• Righteousness Revealed in Christ,
• Righteousness is Received by Faith,
• Righteousness is Realized as we Walk in the Spirit,
• Righteousness was Rejected by the Jews,
• And Righteousness is to be Reproduced in the Life of the Christian.

And right in the middle of all that, we have Romans chapter 8.  It begins with No Condemnation. “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.”

It ends with No Separation.  “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?  As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.  Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.  For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come.  Nor height, nor depth, nor any creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

But I want to draw your attention to verse 34, and I want to show you what I think was the source of Paul’s joy, and what I believe is the source of our Joy.  Cause I’m gonna tell you folks, there comes a time in the life of every Christians when you are gonna have to hold on to your joy – cause you can lose it.

When I was in the military, I would see folks that where down and discouraged, and I would tell them, “Hey, grab a hold of your boot laces and pull yourself back up.”  But life has taught me, there are just some times when you can’t pick yourself up by the boot laces.

Verse 34 says, “Who is he that condemneth?  It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who IS even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.”

Paul said in Phillipians 4, “Rejoice in the LORD always, and again I say rejoice.”  Now why in the world would he say that, cause you can’t have joy all the time?  And Paul certainly knew that.

• He was shipwrecked;
• In perils of the sea, perils of the wilderness, perils of false brethren;
• In labors more abundant;
• 5 times received 40 stripes,
• He was Stoned,
• Imprisoned;
• Near death often;
• He was cold, he was hungry and he was weary;
• And above all that, the care of the church!

Yet Paul says in Romans 8:18, “For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.”

Paul was always Rejoicing.  And I think I found in verse 34 what made Paul rejoice.  He said, “Who is he that condemneth?  It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession FOR US.”

I don’t know about you, but I can say that for Joe Moore, I still stumble and fall at times.  And every time I do, I can see the devil going to God the Father saying, “Look at ole Joe fall AGAIN.  He doesn’t deserve Your love, and he doesn’t deserve Your grace.  He doesn’t deserve Your mercy.”

And I’ll tell you folks, if I had to stand on my own merit, I’d be in a world of trouble.  But thank God I have and Advocate with the Father – Jesus Christ the Righteous.  And every time I stumble, and every time I fall, and every time I come up short, Jesus steps in and says, “Dad, I took care of that!”

• Every time I go to Him and say, “Lord, I failed you again.” He says, “I Know.”
• “Lord, will you forgive me?” He says, “I did.”

There is a story in the Bible about Onesimus.  Onesimus was a slave of Philemon.  Onesimus ran away from his master, and sometime later, while he was on his journey, Onesimus cross paths with the Apostle Paul.  Onesimus got Saved.  Later, Paul was sending him to Philemon, and he wrote and said something along these lines:

“Philemon, I’m sending some people to you.  But Philemon, when you receive them, I want you to receive them as if you were receiving me.  If you’re my co-laborer, receive them like you would me.  Give them the respect you’ve given me.  Don’t be mad at him, and if he owes you anything – put that on my account!”

Now, let’s bring that over into the spiritual realm.  And I can see Jesus, sitting at the right hand of God, making intercession for Joe, and I imagine Him saying something like this:

“Father – DAD – I know he ain’t much.  I know he’s done you wrong.  But when he comes to You, I ask you to receive him as if you were receiving Me.  Dad, I paid for his sins.  If he owes you anything – put that on my account!

“Who is he that condemneth?  It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession FOR US.”

Let me conclude with this thought.  Isaiah 61:10 begins by saying, ““I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness . . .”

• Maybe you and I can’t rejoice over our circumstances – But we can “GREATLY Rejoice in the LORD.”
• Maybe we can’t rejoice over failed relationships, or failed partnerships, or failed business attempts, but, we can “Greatly rejoice in the LORD.”
• Maybe we can’t rejoice over some of the decisions we’ve made in life, but we can “GREATLY Rejoice in the LORD.”

Isaiah is saying here, “I will greatly rejoice.”  He was saying, “From the depths of my soul I will rejoice.”  “MY joy shall be in my God.”

• “Down in the depths of my soul, I’m gonna rejoice that I’m a Child of the King!”
• “Down in the depths of my soul, I’m gonna rejoice that I have a place at the King’s table.”
• “Down in the depths of my soul, I’m gonna rejoice that my name’s written down in the Lamb’s Book of Life.”
• “Down in the depths of my soul, I’m gonna rejoice that I’ve been redeemed by the Blood of the Lamb!”

I heard a story once a long time ago about a Presbyterian Church.  They were not allowed to shout, clap hands or say AMEN in the church.  So, one day, the Pastor brought helium filled balloons to everyone in the service, and said to them that if they felt God speaking to them during the service, they were to let the balloons go.  Through the service, Balloons starting flying up in the air.  By the time the service had ended, only about 1/3 of the church still had balloons.

What I am saying is, some of you need to just let your balloons go!

If you are reading this, and you are Child of God, you have something to rejoice about, no matter what your circumstances are.

You and I have the Garmet of Salvation and we are covered with the Robe of Righteousness.

When the Jews chose their Passover Lamb, for 14 days it was isolated under close inspection.  It was examined thoroughly to see:

• If there were any flaws
• If there were any imperfections
• If there were any blemishes.

And the reason for the close inspection was simply that this Lamb had to be without spot or blemish according to the Law.

In Matthew 22:15-46, you see Jesus, our Passover Lamb, being thoroughly inspected by the critics, who are seeking every possible opportunity to find a flaw, a blemish in Christ.  They are doing everything they can to pierce the purity of Christ’s Armor.

There are basically three groups here doing the questioning, yet not a single one of them was able to find a single kink in His armor, as verse 46 says, “And no man was able to answer Him a word, neither durst any man from that day forth ask Him any more questions.”

1. The first group was the Herodians – These were the politicians of Christ’s day who were concerned with the relationship between the church and the state;

2. The Sadducees (who were the liberal theologians) – they denied the resurrection of both the spirit and the body.  The put a theological question to Christ concerning the resurrection.  And of course question shut them down by stating that God was God of both the living and the dead;

3. Then there were the Pharisees (they were the religious “right”) – they wanted Christ to pick one commandment that stood out above all of the 375 commandments in the Torah, and then they wanted Him to tell them why it was the most important.  His reply was, “ Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind.”

After Jesus answered all their questions, He then put a question to them that would end all their questions.  He said in verse 42, “What think ye of Christ?  Whose son is He?”

Now that I’ve given you the background of the text, I’d like to ask you a question:  What Think Ye of Christ?  Whose Son is He?

Every person reading this has an opinion about Christ.  You have heard of Him.  You have read about Him, about His life and Ministry, as well as His miracles.  We have read about His death on an Old Rugged Cross and of His resurrection from the Grave on the Third Day!

History (or HISstory) records for us that He did in fact live on this earth for 33 ½ years, and somewhere in the depths of your soul you can’t help but think of Him.

And folks, if you have the wrong thoughts of Him, and the wrong relationship with Him, you are not only in trouble in this life, but you’re in trouble for all eternity.  On the other hand, if you have the right thoughts of Him, then you are building on a foundation that cannot be moved.  On Christ the solid Rock I stand, ALL other ground is sinking sand.”

If you are going to have the right opinion about our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, then you must base your verdict on the facts, the evidence, Knowledge and understanding.

And in order to help you do that, I would like to turn this into an eyewitness court appearance based on Scripture. So, let’s gather the facts – let’s weigh the evidence and see who Christ really is.

So, as in any court room, let notice both the witnesses for the Prosecution and the Defense:

THE WITNESSES FOR THE PROSECUTION

The Pharisees

1. They were definitely against the Lord.
2. They neither accepted Him or His message.
3. In fact, they likened Christ to Beelzebub.
4. So we would like to ask them, “Is it true that while Jesus was dying on the Cross in Matthew 27:42, that you said:  “He saved others; He himself He cannot save?”  YES, THAT IS TRUE, WE DID SAY THAT.
5. That’s good.  Ladies and gentlemen of the court, I would like to take just a                  moment to remind you why Jesus came in the first place.  Luke 19:10 says                Jesus came to seek and to save that which was lost.”  So it is true – HE                couldn’t save Himself.  In order for you and I to live, Christ had to become our          sacrifice.  He had to make a choice!

I Now Call Judas Iscariot

1. This is the one who betrayed Christ with a kiss in the Garden of Gethsemane.
2. This is the one who betrayed Christ for 30 pieces of silver.
3. Now here he is in our witness box.
4. Judas Iscariot, what do you have to say about this matter?
5. I HAVE BETRAYED THE INNOCENT BLOOD!
6. Judas, did we hear you right?  Are you saying that the one you betrayed with a          Kiss for 30 meager pieces of Silver was innocent?
7. I HAVE BETRAYED THE INNOCENT BLOOD.

I Now Call the Judge Himself – Pontius Pilate

1. Now he is the one that ordered Christ to be scourged, beaten, stripped of His              clothes and nailed to a tree – crucified.
2. Pilate, is it true that the Blood of Jesus is on your hands, that you gave the                  order to crucify Him?  YES.
3. And Pilate, what were your findings concerning Christ? “I FIND NO FAULT IN HIM!” (and folks, you won’t either!)
4. So Pilate, you “Find no fault in Him,” yet you turned Him over to be                  crucified anyway?  YES.

Now I’d Like to Call the Centurion to the Stand

1. This is the man that actually carried out the orders of Pilate.
2. This is the man that drove the nails into the hands and feet of Jesus.
3. He was one sitting there casting lots for the garments of Christ.
4. He is the one who hoisted the Cross into the air and the one who thrust the                  spear into the side of Christ.
5. Mr. Centurion, is it true that you are the one that actually crucified Christ on              the Cross?
6. It is true – I was there.  I saw the three hours of darkness fall on the land;           I heard Him as He cried out “IT IS FINISHED.”  I watched them take His                 lifeless body off the Cross and bury Him in a borrowed tomb.  Yes Sir – I               was there.”
7. Centurion, What Think Ye of Christ? I think “Truly, this was the Son of God.”

THE WITNESSES FOR THE DEFENSE

Simon Peter

1. The bold one; the boisterous one; the blaspheming one.  This one that denied              Christ 3 times.
2. Peter, there was a time when you denied Christ 3 times right?
3. YES, THAT IS CORRECT.
4. Peter, What Think Ye of Christ?
5. I think, “There is none other name under Heaven given among men,                       whereby we must be saved!”
6. I think “He is the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Now Let’s Call Doubting Thomas to the stand.

1. This is the one who stated to the other disciples, “Except I take my finger and               poke it into the print in my Lord’s hand. Except I take my fist and plunge it                     into His side – I will not believe!”
2. Thomas, What Think Ye of Christ?
3. “He is my Lord and My God!”

We could also call to the stand this morning that great cloud of witnesses from               Hebrews 12:1, and I believe if you were to ask them what they think of Christ, they             would say in unison – “WORHTY IS THE LAMB OF GOD.”

So, What Think Ye of Christ?  This court scene was only a mock scene – or as they call it in Law School – a Moot Court.  Yet, every one has to answer that question for ourselves.

What Think Ye of Christ?  We will either confess Him or we will reject Him.  Our destiny depends on how we answer that question.  I believe the Lord would desire that we all  say like Peter – HE IS THE CHRIST, THE SON OF THE LIVING GOD!  Or, like Thomas – HE IS MY LORD AND MY GOD!?

God loves you, but He will not override your will, so let me close by asking you someone asked me many years ago:  WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO WITH JESUS?

In his first Book to young Timothy, Paul begins giving instructions on doctrine, on theology – he is reproving him for the sake of the ministry so that Timothy “might be thoroughly furnished unto all good works.”  But in 2 Timothy, Paul begins to exhort young Timothy, he begins to encourage him, to admonish him, so beginning in verse 1:

“Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus,  2 To Timothy, my dearly beloved son: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. 3 I thank God, whom I serve from my forefathers with pure conscience, that without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day; 4 Greatly desiring to see thee, being mindful of thy tears, that I may be filled with joy; 5 When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also. 6 Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands.”

As Paul is admonishing, encouraging, and motivating young Timothy, he says in verse 6 to “Stir up.”  Now this is the only place in the New Testament where this is used in such a manner.  In the Greek, this gives a picture of a fire that once burned brightly, that once gave warmth, and heat, and light and illumination.  But, for whatever reason, the fire has now burned down and you can no longer see the flame, and all that remains are the ashes.

Now this word “Stir Up” makes reference to taking a stick, or something that can be driven down into the ashes, something that can push down deep in the ashes until you’ve reached the live coals underneath, and then you begin to stir and stir until you have moved the live coal’s to a place where you can once again ignite the fire that once burned there.

Now this is what Paul is speaking of when he is speaking to young Timothy when he said, “Stir up the gift of God that is within thee.”  It has reference to a burning fire.

Now, when I’m talking about the fire, I want you to understand what I’m talking about.

I believe, that as a young 6 year old boy, sitting in a Sunday School class at 4^th Street Baptist Church nearly 50 years ago, when I knelt down and asked the Lord Jesus to forgive me of my sin and to be the Lord of my life – I believe instantly 2 things happened:

1. I believe Jesus Christ came into my life to stay;
2. The Holy Spirit came to live inside of me.

I didn’t have to pray for it more; I didn’t have to beg for it more; I didn’t have to do a list of things to get it.  I believe it came with accepting Christ – it was a package deal AMEN!  You GET JESUS – YOU GET THE HOLY SPIRIT.

I just believe when I asked Jesus to come into my heart and forgive me of my sins, the Holy Spirit took up residence inside of me and set my soul on fire!  Maybe this is what Isaiah refers to when he says, “It’s a fire shut-up in my bones.”

And can I say, I haven’t always been what God intended me to be all these many years.  I have failed God; I have disappointed God, I have gotten out of “THE WAY,” BUT I’m glad thank God He’s never left me nor forsaken me.

• He’s still there;
• And the fires still burning AMEN!

Now, I’m not talking about False Fire – we see enough of that; I’m not talking about something that’s just a show, something that’s “put-on.” I’m not talking about “strange fire,” and I’m not talking about “Wild Fire.”

I’m talking about a Heavenly, Holy, Biblical fire of God that burns inside the child of God because the Holy Spirit dwells there.

My momma and daddy got a divorce when I was 5 years old.  My momma originally got custody of me and my brother, however, she really didn’t want us.  So, we spent a year going from house to house until my mom’s family convinced her to give custody to my daddy’s mom, my Grandma Moore.  So, at 6, we went to stay with Grandma.

Now, in my grandma’s house, she had an old wood-burning stove in the living room.  Now, I don’t know if I am that old, or we were just that poor – but we also had a hand water pump in the yard.  So, I will never forget that old wood burning stove.  This many years later, it is amazing to look back and see the lessons in life I learned from that stove.  Things like:

1. Fire keeps you warm – good to know God is near Amen.
2. Fire Purges – when it’s burning right, it will keep bad things away;
3. Fire lights and illuminates – I’m glad the fire burning in me lets me know what God wants me to know.

I have learned that some of the greatest lessons in my life have come from some of the simplest things in my life.  And I like things simple AMEN.  Now I didn’t say STUPID things, I said SIMPLE things – and there is a big difference.

One of those lessons was this – no matter how good of a fire you started, or even how much wood you put on it, sometimes:

YOU GOTTA STIR THE FIRE

Back in chapter 1, verse 6, Paul says, “I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands.”

Grandma used to have us boys fetch the wood for the wood-burning stove and to stoke it.  So, whenever it was my turn, I would fill that stove full of wood, even to the point I would have to kick it to cram all that wood in there.

But, sometimes I learned that no matter how much wood I put in that stove, sometimes it just didn’t get the house warm.  What I discovered, and my grandma taught me this, sometimes, you gotta grab the poker and stick it down in those embers and stir things up a bit to get things settle down to where that fire would catch.

You know what I’ve discovered in my Christian life?  Sometimes, I just need a good “stirring up.”

You know, I grew up in a generation where most medications when I was a child came in liquid form.  On every one of those bottles they had stamped on them “Shake Well Before Using.”  You know why, because the medicines would settle, and in order for it to be used effectively, it needed everything mixed together well.  So you’d have to shake things up a bit.

Sometimes, I think God ought to stamp on our foreheads “SHAKE WELL BEFORE USING.”  Cause sometimes, even though we started a good fire, and we stoke that fire and spend time in God’s Word, sometimes, we just get settled in:

• We are not excited like we used to be;
• Things aren’t going quite like they used to;
• Somethings wrong, and sometimes we can’t figure out what it is.

Sometimes friends, you just need to get down to the altar and ask God to reach down into the depths of your soul and just “Stir you up.”

What I’m saying folks is that sometimes, we just get so busy, we get so caught up in the things of our lives that we start to lose the fire inside of us.  We just need to ask God to “Stir us up.”

I don’t know about you, but I want that fire to burn like it’s supposed to burn amen!

That’s what Paul told Timothy.  And by the way, I’m guessing Timothy was probably a pretty spiritual guy.

Father, helps us to “stir up the gift within us.  In Jesus name.

For years, Kim and I have enjoyed riding Hwy 11.  We have thoroughly enjoyed riding the Blue Ridge Parkway.  We love riding to Lake Lure and Black Mountain.

One of the most beautiful rides we’ve done is to Helen, GA, and that was one beautiful ride I tell you.  When we went around that lake, the views were absolutely breath-taking.

And as I thought about that trip this past week, I couldn’t help but think about one day sitting in heaven, relaxing by that calm, crystal sea!  My friends, I don’t think the half has yet been told about the splendor of Heaven!

“Well, Brother Joe, what’s it going to be like up there?”  I don’t know, but I think we’re going to Like it up there!

I think we’re going to rejoice in the Eternity of our Comfort.

To know that there will be no end to the joy we’re experiencing will be eternally comforting!

You and I know that in this lifetime, we have experienced good times and bad times.  And folks let me tell you, I have had some good times in my life – and I’ve had some bad times.

I have been on the mountain top with God I tell you.  However, most of us know, when we’re on that mountain top, we are usually thinking in the back of our minds, “I wonder when the bad times are coming?”

But think about when we get to heaven, and we’re having the best time we’ve ever had – to know that it will never end – I Just Think We’re Going To Enjoy Living Up There!

I think we’re going to rejoice in the Ending of our Course.

To know that you and I are done with the struggles in this life will certainly be reason to rejoice!

Paul, at the end of his life, while sitting in a Roman Prison, takes a pen and paper and begins to write young Timothy these words:

“I am now ready to be offered.  The time of my departure is at hand.  I have fought a good fight; I have finished my course; I have kept the faith.  Henceforth, there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the LORD, the righteous judge shall unto me at that day, but not to me only, but to all those who love his appearing.”

Paul was saying:  “Lord, I done everything you’ve asked me to do.  I fought as hard as I could.  I wasn’t perfect, but Lord I gave it all I had.  Lord:

• It wasn’t easy;
• I wasn’t always pleasant;
• It wasn’t always “joy unspeakable and full of Glory,

“But Lord, I have fought a good fight, I finished my Course, I have kept the faith!”

I believe when Paul entered into Heaven, I believe he heard the Lord say, “Well done, thy good and faithful servant.”

Folks, I think we’re gonna like living up there!

I think we’re going to rejoice in the Endurance of our Commitment.

You and I will be able to rejoice that we’ve completed the commitment we made to Christ.  When you and I get to Heaven, I don’t think we’re going to regret one single minute of our lives we spent serving the LORD.  I believe we will be truly grateful for the day Jesus Christ became our Lord and Savior.

I heard a song once that said, “If you don’t like shouting – don’t get on the cloud with me.”

Folks, that’s about how I feel this morning as I think about Heaven!

Can you imagine what the first day in Heaven is going to be like?

• You realize there are no more storms in your life;
• You realize there is no more separation in your life;
• You realize there is no more difficulty or disasters;
• When there’s no more “church” drama;
• When you realize you actually made it????

Can you imagine waking up that first morning in heaven and realize you have no more back pain, or leg pain, or head pain, or cancer, or parkinson’s or alzheimers???

“And he shall wipe away all the tears from their eyes.”

Folks, I just think we’re gonna like living up there!

My grandson Lucas is fanatic for all things “Transformer.”  With that thought in mind, I write this blog so that one day, when he has been down the road a little further, and been around a little longer, he will understand what it means to be “transformed.”

Romans 12, verse 1 and 2 says, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”

“I beseech you therefore brethren . . .” That word “beseech” is translated in the Greek to mean “beseech.”  But, another way you can also translate this word is to mean “I Beg you.”

Now, if you believe the Bible is the inerrant, infallible, precious, powerful, and inspired Word of God, that every dot and every tittle was God-Breathe, then you have to agree with me that it is not the Apostle Paul who is doing the begging here.  It is God Himself who is begging us.

When you think about that, and you think about the implications of that, that a sovereign, omnipotent  God felt the need to beg us to do anything, just blows me away.

So, what He has to say here is important, it is vital, for God Himself to say, “I Beg you therefore by the mercies of God.”  Folks, that means that you and I need to pay attention, we’d better not miss this.

Now, I would like to think that in my Christian life and in my Christian walk, that God would never have to beg me to do anything.  I would like to think that whatever He commands me to do, that I would readily do it.  I would hope that He wouldn’t have to “beg” me, yet the Bible says, “I Beg you; I urge you; I beseech you.”

Not only might this be important, but it is probably something that is not easy to do.  He says, “That you present you bodies to Christ, a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God which is your reasonable service.”

“That you present your bodies a living sacrifice.”

As most of you know, in the Old Testament, under the Law, they sacrificed and obeyed that Law.  The animal and it’s blood were shed as a one-time sacrifice and then that animals life was over, he couldn’t give anymore service.

NOW, when we come to Christ, and we are dead in our trespasses and sin, and we’ve been resurrected to new life in Jesus Christ, we are to become a “living sacrifice.”  This doesn’t end at our salvation, but only begins at our salvation.  God leaves us here and allows us to become a “living sacrifice” daily to Him.

And then He says, “And this is your reasonable service.”  Have you ever considered what reasonable service is?  Well, my wife put this in perspective for me a few years ago.

For 13 years, I worked on various projects between between Iraq and Afghanistan.  Kim worked with me for a few of those years, and in fact, we meet in Baghdad.  But, through most of those years, I have encountered a lot of people that have told me to make sure I convey to my wife, that they appreciate the sacrifice she makes in order for me to be able to do the things that I do.

So, one day, Kim and I are talking an I tell her that so-and-so wanted me to tell her that they appreciate the sacrifices she makes for me to do what I do.  And do you know what she said to me?

“Joe (of course she calls me Precious) – it is not a sacrifice for me to support what you are doing for our family, and what you are doing for our church – it is my “reasonable Service.”

You know something, God will never ask us to do anything that is unreasonable.  We may not understand it; we may not like it, and we may not want to do it – But HE will never ask us to do anything unreasonable.

And then we get into verse 2, which I believe is the subject matter at hand.  This is what He is begging us to do; this is what’s so vitally important:

“And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”

So this is what is so important, this is what God is begging us, urging us to do.

If you ask me what the greatest need, and what I believe is the most important need of our churches today, what I believe every preacher needs, what I believe Core Team member needs, what every deacon needs, what every elder needs, and what every member sitting in our church’s need – what I need myself is this:

That we somehow learn daily, to become less like the world, and become more like Jesus.  That is the greatest need that I have, and that is probably the greatest need that you have.

This is what God is begging us to do – to somehow, not to be conformed, or made like the world, but to become less like the world and be transformed by the renewing of our minds, to be transformed into the image of Christ.

You see folks, this is a process.  When Christ saved us, He cleansed us, He made us whole, and then we began the process of sanctification which is a day-in and day-out process.  This is how we become less like the world and more like Christ.

And if that is our biggest need, and if that is what God is begging us to do, then I think it is important that we address this process right here in Romans 12.

Now, as I’ve already said, whatever God is begging us to do is not an easy thing to accomplish.  And the reason He is begging us is because there are a lot of things trying to keep us like the world.

Please understand today that Satan is not going to help us be like Christ – he’s going to do everything he can to make us be like the world, to be conformed to the image of the world.

And guess what, the world is not going to help us transform into the likeness of Christ either – the world wants us to be conformed to the world!

And I’ll tell you why – because when you and I live a Christlike life before them it makes their lives look more sinful.  You wanna know why your co-workers aren’t as excited about your faith as you are?  Because it forces them to see their sin for what it really is.  That’s why they want us to be like them!

And I’ll tell you something else, my flesh is not going to help me be like Christ either.  My flesh keeps wanting to pull me to the world, to keep me conformed to the world.

Please understand this, we have a daily battle within our flesh.  And when you think you’ve overcome the world and you got everything in check . . . you are in for a big surprise.

Paul said “There’s a battle going on inside of me.  The flesh wars against the Spirit and the Spirit wars against the flesh;  So much so, that some days I don’t do those things I should do, and the thing I should not do, I find myself doing.”  That is a paraphrase now – so just understand that.

Church, if the Apostle Paul had that kind of battle going on, then I assure you, we have that kinda battle going on.  And my biggest problem is that my body is possessed by this big ole biker redneck!  Now most days I am able to keep him beaten down.  But some days, when I’m tired and beaten down, when I’ve spent more time in a day with aggravating people than I should have – some days, that redneck biker climbs right back out of me.

What I am trying to tell you, what I’m trying to get across is that this process of transforming ourselves to be like Christ is not easy, and it’s not something we can do in a day – it’s gonna take a lifetime.

So, how do we become less like the world and more like Jesus?  There was a time when I would preach these two verse, and then I would go to other places in the Bible to find the verses I wanted to support the points I wanted to drive home.

And nearly every time, without exception, that I have heard anyone preach on these 2 verses, they typically do the same thing.  And I’ll tell you why.  We wanted to take these two verses and talk about the “OUTWARD things:

• How you’re hair ought to be;
• How your clothes ought to be;
• What kind of jewelry you can wear;
• What kind of music you should listen to.

All these things on the OUTSIDE.  So we’d find verses to support what WE wanted you to understand.

I’ll tell you what I’ve discovered over the past 40+ years of being a Christian:  I’ve seen folks that have been in church for years, they sing in the choir, they teach Sunday school, they sit on deacon boards, and you look at their outward appearance:

• They dress right (whatever dressing right is);
• They have nice hairdo’s (whatever nice hairdos are);
• I mean they look the part.

Everybody thought they were super spiritual, only to find out they were not even saved to begin with.  Outside, they look like a Christian, but inside they were dead.  So, I’ve learned it is possible to clean up the outside without ever touching the inside.

So, I’m gonna tell right now upfront, I don’t really care about what you look like on the outside anymore – I’m concerned about what you look like on the inside.  If you are right on the inside, God will have you dress and act the way He wants you too – not the way the preacher wants you too.

Now, it’s easy to run all over the Bible and cherry pick verses to support my pet-peeves, but, since God is begging us here in Chapter 12, I figure it’s probably a good idea for me to stay right here and share what He has for us out of this chapter.

So look with me if you will at verse 3:  “For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; . . .”  Now that alone is enough to cause a whole lot of preachers to scurry off to other verses in the Bible.

And as we read on down a little further into the chapter, we discover how we are all members of one body, and though we are not all the same, we’re members of the same body – the body of Christ.

And then he begins to talk about some things that go right on with what He’s begging us to do in verses 1 & 2.  These are things that we are to accomplish, things we are to work on if we are to become less like the world and more like Christ.

Now, I can’t possibly give them all to you in one sitting, so I’m just gonna point out 3 simple things – and maybe the reason I am pulling these three is because they are probably the 3 areas of my own life that I have to work on the most.  These are the things that remind me that I have not arrived yet.  Now I am going to get these 3 things from verses 8, 9 and 10.

Notice with me in verse 8, and remember now, we are talking about being less like the world and more like Jesus:  “Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: (NOW NOTICE THE FIRST THING)  he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity;”

Down through the years, I’ve learned that you can tell a lot about people’s Christianity by the way they give.  And I’m not just talking about money here, I’m talking the attitude of giving; their philosophy of giving.

The Bible tells us here that we are to give with Simplicity.  Another interpretation of that this passage is simply this – to be a generous giver.

What is the world’s philosophy of giving?  The world’s philosophy is this:

• Give only if you have more than you need already;
• Give only if you’re not going to miss it when it’s gone;
• Give only if you’re going to get something in return;
• Or give if it’s going to make people indebted to you.

That’s the way the world gives – but I’m grateful today that’s not the way God gives.  I think the two greatest examples of giving in all eternity is first.  God the Father.  How did He give?  Well, He gave us the best that He had.  He didn’t give us some angel, He gave us His Only Begotten Son.  He didn’t have to, but He chose to.  There’s no greater giver than the Father.

But the second greatest example of giving is the Son Himself.  Well, what did he give?

He gave us His life, “For no greater love hath no man than this, that he lay down his life for a friend.”

Somehow, someway, I’ve got to learn how to give like God gives, and like His Son gives.  To give with Simplicity, to give generously.  And do you know what that means?  It means that sometimes, God’s going to ask you to give when you can’t figure it out on paper.

And I’m not just talking about tithing here, I’m talking giving of your time, or your talents.

Several years ago, Kim and I prayed and ask God to help us to give like He’s given to us.  I asked God not to help us try to figure it out, just simply trust and give with a generous heart.  And I’ll tell you something, it’s easy to give away things you don’t want – the world can do that.

But if you start giving with a generous heart, I promise you that God will begin transforming your life into the image of His Son.

God has given me more than I could ever give to Him.  And I will tell you folks, I am not where I need to be in regards to giving with simplicity, but I’m a lot more like Christ now than I used to be.

Not only do we need to Give with Simplicity, but look at verse 9:  “Let love be without dissimilation.”

That word “Dissimilation” means “Hypocrisy.”  “Let love be without hypocrisy,” or “Love with a genuine love.”

So, what is the world’s philosophy on love?

• First, the world doesn’t even know what love is;
• The world thinks that lust is love;
• The world says love those that love you;
• But, if you don’t want to, you don’t have to;
• You don’t have to love those that hurt you;
• You don’t have to love those that have done you wrong.

But, that’s not what God says.  God says, “Yes, love those that love you,” but He also says, “Love those that despitefully use you.”

We are to love those that love us, and we are to love those that don’t love us.  And I’ll be the first one to tell you, there are some people that are just hard to love.  But God says, we’ve gotta love them anyway.

No wonder preachers run away from these verses, cause these are the things we don’t want to talk about.

Over the past 15 years, God has been teaching me a lot about love and how I am supposed to love others, and the plain truth of the matter is, if I am going to love God the Father the way I am supposed to, and if I am going to love God the Son the way I am supposed to, I’ve gotta learn to love you the way I am supposed to.

And again, I am definitely not where I need to be in this area of my life, But I’m a lot more like Christ in this area than I used to be.

If we are going to be more like Jesus and less like the world, then we’ve gotta learn to love without hypocrisy.

We come to church, in our little safe haven, and we sing about love, we talk about love, we tell people in church we love them, then we leave church and go have the very people we say we love for lunch.

The Bible says we are to “Love without hypocrisy.”

And finally, look at verse 10, “In honor, preferring one another.”

Now here’s the world’s philosophy on this:

• If you want to get where you want to be, it’s ok to step on as many people as you need to to get there;
• It’s OK to lie and cheat and steal from someone, if it works for your benefit;
• It’s OK to put somebodies light out if it will make your light shine brighter.

But, that’s not what God says.  God says we are to be honest in all our dealings.  We are to treat people the way we want to be treated.  We are to do unto others as we’d have them do unto us.

This means that you have honor, you have graciousness in dealing with others.  Because in honor, in graciousness, I am to prefer others.

Isn’t that what Jesus did when He went to the Cross?

• He who knew no sin, had no sin;
• He who was innocent;
• He who was without guilt.

But in honor, He preferred us and took our place on Calvary’s Cross so that we would not have to die and spend eternity in a devil’s hell.

Now friends, that’s the greatest example of graciousness, “in honor preferring others,” that I know of.

• Give with Simplicity;
• Love without Hypocrisy;
• In honor, preferring others.

These are the things that work on the inside.  These are the things that will transform your life into the image of Christ.  These are the things that will make you less like the world and more like Jesus.

I pray that it is the desire of everyone reading this blog to be transformed – to be less like the world and be more like Jesus!