What Must I Do?

Mark 10:17-31

Sunday March 14, 2010

Let me set the scene for you:

Jesus has just welcomed little children with open arms. The disciples have spoken sternly to the parents for bringing their children to Jesus. To them, these kids were't much more than a nuisance to the teacher. To Jesus they were the perfect picture of what faith in God's kingdom is supposed to look like.

Jesus rebukes his guys and then makes that famous declaration: "Anyone who doesn't receive the kingdom of God like a child will never enter it."

His statement declares that we must have faith as a little child. This means believing and trusting God for salvation and then putting feet to our faith and walking as a child would with his hand in his father's hand.

As the crowd was dispersing Jesus begins his journey towards Jerusalem. He is now within a short few weeks of enduring the cross and suffering its shame. Death is beginning to rise on the horizon.

And then a man comes running and falls on his knees in front of Jesus. "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?"

Talk about coming out of nowhere!

My best guess is that this man had been trailing Jesus for some time. I imagine him standing near the edges of the crowds and Jesus taught and healed. And I suppose that he was in the crowd gathered around when Jesus spoke about having the faith of a little child to enter the kingdom of God. And so he comes to Jesus with that burning questions: "What good deed can I do to inherit eternal life?"

This dialogue between Jesus, this young man and the disciples serves us this morning as an object lesson about what it means to not simple accept Jesus as our Savior but to live our life with Jesus as our Lord. In other words, being a Christian is about a whole lot more than just accepting Jesus for the forgiveness of sins.

I'm a Kentucky Wildcat basketball fan. My blood bleeds blue. In fact, when I give blood it is marked as for Kentucky fans only; it's not compatible with anything else. You could say that I am a follower of Kentucky basketball. But I can tell you that I am not fanatical like a lot of the fan base is. You won't find me paying $1000 to sit in the arena yesterday and watch my Kentucky Wildcats put the leather to Tennessee- as much fun as that might be. And if they don't win the championship my life will continue forward. I'm not going to let a bunch of 18 and 19 year-olds determine my moodiness. (I don't think, anyway.) Kentucky Wildcat basketball is not my "god."

But Jesus is- and is supposed to be. That is the heart of the issue Jesus brings to the surface with this occasion. The whole truth about salvation is not just making a decision to receive Jesus Christ and the forgiveness of sins. That's only half of the gospel, as the great Chinese theologian Watchman Nee pointed out. Jesus is making clear that to follow Him- to receive his life- is every bit about walking with him in every occasion throughout life: trials, triblulations, sickness, good times, bad times, with money, without money. Jesus enables us by the Holy Spirit to transcend our problems and live for his glory.

For the main character of our story, that was too hard to accept. To the disciples that made salvation impossible- if even a man of every possible advantage can't be saved then who can?

Jesus remarks that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into heave. Wow! Who can be saved?

Understand something about this "camel through the needle" imagery: Jesus meant what he said. The idea that the "eye of the needle" in the Middle East meant a small door inside of a large gate or a narrow pass that forced camels to their knees to get through is nowhere in my research. This idea, according to scholars, was the imaginative creation of tour guides trying to impress their customers. Yes, these places are called the "eye of the needle" now but weren't in Jesus' time. Jesus was serious that money and materialism would be a major hindrance to the rich.

And times have not changed much.

Are you ready for Jesus to point out the hole in your faith this morning? Is there some hang-up to you being totally sold out for Jesus Christ?

With this rich young rule we witness is…

1. A Desperate Man with a Monumental Question. (v. 17-20)
   

We refer to the main character of this account as the rich young ruler. The reason being is that he is rich. He is also young and rich. But even more, he is rich, young and a ruler. The three together give us a picture of someone is a very rare specimen- even by today's standards.

We see that he is rich. How he got his wealth is hard to say: inheritance, hard work, swindling or a mix of things. [There are some who would say that you couldn't be young and rich without pulling some kind of shenanigans.]

That he was a ruler is significant. Very likely he is a religious leader of some capacity, perhaps in a synagogue nearby or maybe even a part of the Sanhedrin. Nobody is sure about the specifics. What we are sure of is his desperation. He wants something more.

As he was walking away from Jesus' huddle with the children I wonder if he realized that "if I don't ask Jesus now I will never find out." So…

a. He runs to Jesus and kneels before him.

I think this man had mulled things over for quite some time. Someone of his capacity wasn't going to run to Jesus for an answer to their deepest need- unless they were desperate.

b. He refers to Jesus' deity.

This man was no dummy. By referring to Jesus as "Good teacher" he realized exactly what he was saying and Jesus calls him on it. "No one is good but God." Exactly, seems to be what this young fellow is saying. God has revealed something to him that many others either dismissed out of unbelief or they just simply didn't know to start with.

c. He is searching for something more.

"What must I do to inherit eternal life?" His reference, according to many scholars, was not so much about the hereafter- as important as they might be to us- but about a higher more life of quality.

He has everything. He is young- how many of us wish that we were a little bit younger? He was rich- who wouldn't want a little bit more money than they already have? He was a ruler- who doesn't want to be in charge rather than have someone else telling us what to do?

But something is missing. With everything that he has and achieved there seems to be something still unfulfilling about life. Jesus suggests to him, as a test I am sure, to be obedient to the commands.

d. He is obedient to everything.

This guy is the real deal. If he weren't I would think one of the writers about this story would have indicated so. He obeys all the commands, especially- according to his assessment- the ones dealing with people.

Jesus understood this. This young fellow either is already living a perfect life or isn't willing to admit that there is a problem.

e. …But he still lacks something.

Jesus then puts his finger right into the hole of his faith. There is something that is missing and Jesus has a knack for pointing out these kinds of things with us. He does so with this man.

And so the question begs to be asked of us this morning: Are you lacking something in your desire to walk with Jesus?

I'm convinced that God's work of making us holy is incremental. Sometimes, some are called on to surrender more than others and faster than others. I've seen too much evidence of this. Furthermore, it seems to be that as we grow in the grace of God, he moves us in a certain direction that may not always seem logical to other people.

There's something else that I'm thinking: How we respond to each challenge given to us by our Lord determines the next steps of our life.

For this rich young ruler the next step may be a turning point in his life. He soon discovers that he has encountered…

2. A Loving Savior with a Colossal Demand. (v. 21-24)

Mark tells us that Jesus loved him. This idea of love was not because this man was a goody-two-shoes but because he wanted to love him. Jesus' character is to love. But in this case his love for him must have really shown. Jesus loved him with what we call "agape" love- an unconditional love. If this fellow figured he impressed Jesus with his obedience to the commandments since his bar-mitzvah he was mistaken. Jesus loved him beyond that just like Jesus loves you beyond anything you do right or wrong.

Jesus looks at you right now and loves beyond your obedience, your disobedience, what you have and what you don't have.

And so what Jesus tells him and what he tells you is not out of trying to make you more lovable to him, but because he loves you so much that he wants you learn to love him more than anything else- just like he loves you more than anything else.

As Max Lucado wrote: "God loves you just the way you but he doesn't want you to stay that way; He wants you to be like Jesus." He wants us to follow him so that we can be discipled to be like him.

Jesus tells the man three main directives:

a. "Sell all you have."

Again, sell all you have. Perhaps for this fellow that would be so hard to do except the next part really gets to him. "Sell all you have" and do what?

b. "Give it to the poor."

Let's face a reality here: giving all of your income to the poor rarely- if ever- brings a good rate of return on your investment. I'm not financial guru but I can tell you that the federal government has been investing in the poor in a variety of help for the needy programs for nearly fifty years and the poor are still with us.

c. "Come follow me."

Here's a guy who comes to Jesus and says, "What do I do to get eternal life?" Jesus said, "Give your money away." Is that the right answer?

Can you imagine being a good businessman- such as this young man could have been- and hearing the sales pitch Jesus is giving you. "Sell all you have, give to the poor and then follow Jesus." What kind of investment is this? So I get treasure in heaven. Tell that to my investors!

But what is Jesus saying? The young man said, "I want eternal life." Jesus said, "Yeah, that's fine, but we are going to deal with something else first. Are you willing to follow me?"

He could have asked him to do anything. But instead he says: "Sell all and give to the poor."

Why did Jesus do this? Because He knew that money was the god of this man's life. And so he says, "Let's deal with the heart of the matter here. I will show you the way but are you willing to give up everything, if I ask you?"

He was no and he went away very sad.

I like how our Calvinist friend John MacArthur put it: Salvation is an exchange of all that I am for all that He is. It's saying, "I won't follow me, I'll follow you."

The man went away a broken and sad man because he didn't want to follow Jesus Christ. Instead he wanted to rule his own life. Jesus said, "Keep the commandments," and he said, "I've kept them all!" But he wouldn't submit to the authority of Christ- the greatest of the commands of loving God with all of one's being.

Look at your life. Do you follow Christ? Do you want to follow Christ? Do you want to want to follow Christ?

It's like Teresa Avila who once said: "I don't want to love Jesus; I want to want to love Jesus."

The truly saved "Love Christ and hate sin." They desire to live a life that goes beyond themselves and their desires.

Jesus told the adulterous woman in John 8:11- "Go now and leave your life of sin."

The message of salvation can't be clearer: Christians are called to a life of holiness not to a life of sinfulness. Furthermore, this holiness cannot tolerate selfishness. Christians are called to follow Jesus and his ways, not the devil and his ways.

Dr. John Oswalt makes this observation: "Not only do we need not sin, and we must not sin, we dare not sin. [Why?] For the wages of sin is death. Here, Paul is writing to the believer. Why can we Christians not continue in sin? Because the wages of sin is death! You cannot earn eternal life; that is a gift from God. But you can earn eternal death if you continue in sin after supposedly accepting Christ's offer." (Called to be Holy pp. 111-112)

Yikes! In other words, as a Christian you cannot ultimately have one foot in two kingdoms. As John Wesley aptly pointed out:

The will of God is a path leading straight to God. The will of man is another path: it leads from God. If we walk in the one, we must necessarily quit the other. We cannot walk in both.

2 Corinthians 5:17- "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!"

So what does this mean when the rubber our faith meets the road of our life?

3. A Salvation Call that Doesn't Make sense. (v. 25-31)

Now you all probably knew by now that I'm probably not the sharpest knife in the drawer. But there is something nagging me, here. Jesus tells this man to sell all of his possessions, give the money he gets to the poor and then come follow him. And then hardly a few weeks later (according to my estimate of time) a woman named Mary interrupts his supper with some friends by breaking open a jar of expensive perfume, pours it on his feet and then wipes them with her hair. (John 12:1-8)

Are you kidding me?!

Why would Jesus tell this man to sell all he's got, give the money to the poor and then a few weeks later he allows a woman to come and pour a year's wages on his feet? Judas Iscariot makes a valid point, in my estimation that this could have sold and the money given to the poor. After all, that is what Jesus seemed to have indicated to this rich young ruler. (And then Judas is accused of being a thief at heart.)

It doesn't make sense. Jesus appears to be inconsistent.

And that is exactly what I've been learning in life. To follow Jesus is not following a particular recipe. There are plenty of Christians over the centuries who have suffered mercilessly for following Christ. There are plenty of Christians who have suffered disease, sicknesses, loved ones dying, financial despair, and everything else.

Some Christians benefit financially and seem to live a comfortable life. Other Christians struggle just to get their prescriptions and have to gauge whether they are sick enough or hurting enough to go to a doctor.

Some Christians seem to have perfect children who grow up to love God and yet others have children who walk away from God when they grow up.

Some seem to give up everything to follow God and don't reap very many financial blessings because of it while others seem to have surrendered little and are reaping bountiful financial blessings.

And this is what I have concluded and what Jesus' message seems to be here: Follow me and leave the logic to God.

That's it. Because you will go crazy trying to figure this thing out.

a. Following Jesus can lead you anywhere. We only limit God by not allowing Him total access to our life. Jesus must have a backstage pass to who you really are when you aren't on stage.

b. Following Jesus can cause you do anything. This following Jesus is a scary deal. I would have never dreamed of pastoring a church and leading people in the ways of Jesus. It's scary a lot of times. But I know that with my hand in Jesus' hand I can do anything for him!

c. Following Jesus will require you to "sell" everything. There is a price to pay for being a Christian. Friends won't understand so figure that you will lose some friends. Family members won't understand so figure that some family members will think you're crazy. But when you are willing to give up everything to follow Christ the blessed Holy Spirit will give you the power to do just that.

d. Following Jesus will not always make sense. To walk with Jesus won't always seem logical to others- even other Christians- but it will make sense to you in that moment. This is more than just taking a red pill or a blue pill; it's a conscious choice to believe that Jesus saves a person from all sin and sets their life in a completely new direction.

Conclusion: Are you ready to sell all to follow Christ?

What is God speaking to you about today? Are you ready to commit all of yourself to Jesus Christ this morning?

Hymn #516- Search Me, O God

FREEDOM OVER TEMPTATION

Sunday January 24, 2010

Introduction: There will be battles in life.

How do you resist the temptation to sin? How do you do in the face of such issues as anger, lust, jealousy, pride, drug and alcohol abuse, and greed?

A couple of weeks ago we learned about the sin that was crouching at Cain's door and that God had told him he was to master it. Instead, Cain allowed sin access to deeper regions of his heart and he failed to master the sin of envy and anger. The result was earth's first murder and Abel's blood crying out for justice.

Last week we took a look at the parents of Cain and saw that Eve was enticed and deceived into taking the illicit fruit from the forbidden tree and then handed the fruit to Adam. The result was that their eyes were open but not quite the way they expected. Sin and shame was the first curse and then they had to face their loving Creator. As a result they were banished out of the Garden- the perfect world created for them- and given coats of skins taken from innocent animals slain on their behalf.

Where Adam and Eve failed; where Cain failed; where countless others failed at mastering the sin crouching at their door, Jesus does not fail. In fact, Jesus takes on sin in the most severe weakness of the flesh in order to prove what it truly means to be a human person.

God did not create you and I for the purposes of sin and doing evil. His plan is that sin and evil desires be stamped out of your life so that He can use you to the fullest of the potential you were created for.

I am fascinated by Jesus' temptations because they don't seem to quite match up with the temptations we deal with. Jesus wasn't tempted in the desert by lust but a lot of us are. Jesus wasn't tempted by greed but a lot of us are. Jesus wasn't tempted by things that we seem to be prone to as human beings.

However, what I discover is that Jesus was tempted on a deeper level that really does mirror our own temptations.

Dostoevsky suggests in his book The Brothers Karamazov that by turning down the three temptations that we just read about, Jesus forfeited the three greatest powers as his disposal: miracle, mystery and authority.

And for us this might seem out of our league. But it really isn't when you think about it.

MIRACLE- We all want short-cuts in life. We would rather have the bread, the money, the material things without the sweat, hard-work and even worry to get it. We would prefer the easy way rather than the hard way. So many struggle with issues of lust because they have habits that buy into the instant gratification that sin begs them towards. Satan offers Jesus the easy way to satisfy his own personal hunger. But Jesus resists the devil and shows us restraint.

MYSTERY- We all want to be somebody in life. We want people to see us as wonderful beyond belief and to respect us- maybe even adore us. Satan offers Jesus the easy way to winning over the people and even winning over his enemies. By simply leaping from the temple pinnacle- at least 200 feet- and being protected by the angels, Jesus would enjoy instant fame. And who wouldn't want that? However, again Jesus resists the devil and shows us restraint in the face of temptation.

AUTHORITY- We all want to be in control. Climb the corporate ladder, beat out the guy beside you and in front of you. In a dog-eat-dog world, we can get caught up in the whole "I want to be in charge" mentality. It creeps subtly into your life in ways you don't realize: where to eat supper, how your shirts are folded, the kind of car you want; it creeps subtly into church life where in recent years there are complaints of congregations disrespecting the pastor and the pastor disrespecting the congregation, people disrespecting each other and every disrespecting God because we want the authority, to be the final answer. Satan offers Jesus all the kingdoms of the world. In essence, you will be in charge of everything. For Jesus, this would be the easy way to do God's will. But with one small detail: bow down and worship evil. Jesus refuses, resists the devil and once again shows restraint.

At the end of the temptations, after Jesus has overcome the devil, the angels show up to minister to him.

So what does this all mean to us- each one of us- old Christians, new Christians, struggling Christians and even victorious Christians? I'm glad you asked!

For you today, for you facing personal unseen battles of faith, for you struggling to do the right things and for you who may be on the mountain-top today but might face a valley tomorrow there are some principles and facts for us to consider as we find Freedom over Temptation.

So let's put on our thinking caps and let's take a deeper look into how you can have freedom over temptation

1. Temptation as a Result of NATURAL YEARNINGS.
   

We all have natural yearnings. The most basic human needs according to my seventh grade Geography class with Mr. Rop are food, clothing and shelter. Wrapped in among these basic survival needs are other natural yearnings.

… to be satisfied.

Most people want to go to bed with a full stomach and a peaceful mind.

…to be loved.

There isn't a person alive who doesn't long to be truly loved. And so people fall into temptations to fulfill that longing to be truly loved. However, no matter how much illicit sex a person may get, they will never realize true love both from God and their spouse unless they live life God's way.

…to be somebody.

Hurt and abused people struggle with self-esteem issues. In fact, I would guess just about everyone does at one time or another. But only in Christ can any of us truly experience what it means to be "fearfully and wonderfully made" by God.

…to be secure.

When we awake in the mornings and when we go to bed at night and as we live and work during the day we want to know that we are safe. We depend on our nation's leaders to protect us from the outside evils of terrorism; we depend on our nation's policing forces such as the FBI to catch criminals and bring them to justice; we depend on the State of Michigan, Oceana County, and for some of us, the Village of Shelby to protect us from others infringing on our rights by taking things from our homes, hurting us or our families and causing harm to our communities.

But true security comes only through faith in Jesus Christ. Governments will fail- and have; police forces aren't perfect; criminals do crimes and harm others; but Jesus never fails.

Satan wants us to short-cut our natural yearnings and give in to temptations that violate the Word of God. We have to take seriously what God's desires are for our lives and resist the devil.

A second principle about temptation is:

2. Temptation as a Result of HUMAN ENVIRONMENT.

Who are you and what do you do when nobody is looking? That's a monumental question about the true character of a person.

Who are you and what do you do when someone is looking? That's just as important of a question about your true character.

I spoke with a couple of nurses yesterday after having an MRI. One of them used to work at one of our local supermarkets but now works in the lab at the hospital. I asked her what it was like and she made the comment that she actually sees a lot of the same customers. And then she said this: they seem nicer here to me here than they were towards me in the store.

I found that strange. And so I got to thinking while laying there in that cylinder with my eyes closed: should Christians be any different in a different place? Of course not.

As Christians, our environment should not be the cause of us sinning. But understand, temptation follows you wherever you go. Life Edgar Allan Poe's story "The Mask of the Red Death" evil cannot be boxed out, boarded out or avoided. Monks who attempted to defeat evils such as lust would remove themselves from outside world contact but still struggled with the same lust problems.

Understand, there are certain things we have little control over but then there are certain things we have lots of control over.

Here is a short list of human environments that we all have to deal with:

a) The Place you Live.

Beware of how you live in your home- you control what you watch on television and look at on your computer.

b)The Place you Work.

Beware of co-workers who would love nothing better than to tempt you, make your life miserable because of your faith and say all manner of evil against you. Resist lashing back at such people.

c) The Places you go.

Guard the places you are at. Some of you can go to the Brown Bear for a bear-burger and not have a problem. An alcoholic must truly consider not going to places that serve alcohol.

d) The People you encounter.

Watch whom you build relationships with. I have witnessed co-workers in the shop who finally gave in to the temptation of an affair due in part because they worked in close quarters together and developed emotional bonds. Two marriages, two families were destroyed by what seemed to be a natural thing. Maybe you quit a certain restaurant or going to a certain place or asking for a transfer or even quitting your job to save not simply your marriage or your reputation but to save your soul.

Be careful who your friends are. Paul properly quotes a Greek philosopher: Bad company corrupts good character. Watch out for friends who want to steer you towards evil. Make new friends if you have to. And at the same time you be the friend who stands for what's right.

I could go on and on but let's take a look at a third principle about temptation:

3. Temptation as a Result of SUBTLE APPEALS.

Satan very rarely runs a full frontal attack against your spirituality. Check out these crafty and tempting pleas toward sin:

"You deserve it."

"You can't help yourself."

"It's not your fault."

"You were born this way."

"Others are doing it."

"You have a right."

"You've got to do…

• …what feels good.

• …what feels right.

• …what's best for you.
  

In none of these subtle appeals do you find the leading of the Holy Spirit. In facing temptation you have to do as Jesus did and resist the enemy and he will flee. It's important for us to understand that Jesus understands what you go through.

"Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted." Hebrews 2:18

"For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are- yet was without sin."
Hebrews 4:15

4. Overcoming Temptation as a Result of THE HOLY SPIRIT.

In truly overcoming temptation we have to understand that it is not about me but about God. The Bible says this about you and me who claim Christ as our Lord and Savior: "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit whom you received from God? You are not your own you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)

Jesus paid the price so that you could be born again and saved from your sins. Because you belong to the Holy Spirit you now live your life by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Here are some important guidelines to enjoying freedom over temptation.

• Understanding & Using the Scriptures.

Get into God's Word regularly. I promote that every Christian should do at least 5 days a week for devotions. We have devotionals available to you. Make a practice of reading your Bible- even small portions. If you struggle with reading we have the Bible on tape- some have utilize this method.

• Listening & Learning from Others.

Read Christian authors, learn from other Christians even right here, listen to their experiences and then apply the truths you learn. I'm not going to nail everything you need for your faith. You won't find me jealous because you happen to watch Charles Stanley or listen to Chuck Swindol or read Max Lucado. I like all of those guys and have their books on my shelves.

• Developing & Doing Spiritual Disciplines.

Come up with a plan on living a solid Christian life. Next month we will be starting Christianity 101 Class. The objective is learn the basics about how to live a Christian life, what the Bible is all about and Christian doctrines we believe. In that we will lay out a way to make a plan of spiritual growth and then to work that plan into routines.

• Praying & Praising as Life Habits.

I have found that my life could not have dealt with some of the issues I have had to deal with- and even temptations. Good praying and praising habits are essential to every Christian here. Find the kind of Christian music style you enjoy and crank it up when you drive somewhere or do housework or work on your car.

Learn the old hymns as well as the newer stuff. Not because we need to be old-fashioned but because the hymn book has some fantastic songs that address the very issues we deal with every day.

Conclusion: There will be battles for you to win.

God has not called us a life of defeat-ism but to a life of freedom and victory through Christ.

Here are some nitty-gritty guidelines for you to be victorious over the battles that you will face in every phase of life:

• You are called to live a holy life. "For He chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight." (Ephesians 1:4)
  
• You will always face diverse temptations.
  "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kind." (James 1:2) James seems to make a realistic assumption about the Christian life: there will be trials of many kind.
  
• You won't be tempted beyond your ability to resist. "No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it." (1 Corinthians 10:13 NASB)
  
• The Holy Spirit will help you as you allow Him to. "So I say, live by the Spirit and you will not satisfy the desires of the sinful nature." (Galatians 5:16)
  
• Seek forgiveness when necessary. "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9)
  
• Get an accountability partner. Everyone should have an accountability partner who can help you win in your walk with Christ.
  As iron sharpens iron, so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend. (Proverbs 27:17)
• Claim the holy life that is yours. Too often we forget that holiness is not a goal to achieve but is a life to live. Way too often we strive to live appropriate lives for Christ, for our marriage and family and even for ourselves and yet forget in all of our strivings that to be holy is not the ultimate goal. To live out the holiness of Christ that has truly gripped our life is what this dark and lonely world desperately needs. "So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus." Romans 6:11 {This last thought was added during publishing. As I thought further on this message I felt that future readers might benefit from a fuller understanding of where I'm coming from.}
  

How do you resist the temptation to sin? How do you deal with such issues as anger, lust, jealousy, pride, drug and alcohol abuse, and greed?

Remember there is victory in Jesus. There is forgiveness of sins, there is cleansing and there is standing true.

Praise the Lord- There is freedom over temptation.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

Genesis 4:1-16

A few years ago (2004) a Chinese movie hit theatres and was a box office smash called “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.” The plot of the movie was about a sword that was stolen as well as two women who were fighting for standing in a society that honored men far above women- especially in the martial arts.

The title of the movie reflected a Chinese proverb that meant: “Talented or dangerous people hidden from view.”

(source: Actress Zhang Ziyi web site- http://csc.ziyi.org/filmography/cthd/wangdulu/titlename.html)

And the movie seems to bear that out. Each character is hiding their true identity in order to avoid issues with other characters. In the end, the movie is tragedy as the main characters come to their demise in various ways.

I chose the title of this message not to reflect the movie but to reflect the reality of sin and problem of sins in the lives of people and especially God’s people. We expect sinners to sin. We anticipate that without Christ a person will be prone to committing sin. However, we don’t believe that it is ever okay for a Christian to commit sin.

And here lies the heart of the message today: sin is like a crouching tiger lying in wait at the door of your life. You face the temptation, you allow it to manifest itself in your life and pretty soon this sin masters you and controls who you really are- not the person you want people to think you are.

Furthermore, behind the sin crouching is the hidden dragon of Satan who is continually seeking whom he may devour. Jesus warns us that the evil one comes to steal, kill and destroy.

What is going on in your life?

1. Brotherly Differences.

Siblings are going to be different. I enjoy the relationships of 3 families: my biological family with 2 brothers and 2 sisters; my foster family with 2 brothers and 1 sister; and my wife’s family with 4 sister-in-laws and 1 brother-in-law. Trust me, we are all different and have all shared our differences over the years. But none to the point of what we see happening with Cain and Abel.

a) Cain- Older; Abel- Younger.

When Cain was born Eve simply says, “I have brought forth a man.” Most likely she was referencing her miraculous ability to bear a child and the very first one. When Abel was born there is no response recorded but I have to believe that she was just as thrilled with having a second child.

b) Cain- Farmer; Abel- Shepherd.

Cain was a worker of the soil. For most of us here, we hold a high regard for farmers. They literally feed the world and feed us. We don’t think too often of shepherds and ranchers- unless we’re looking for a good sweater or steak- or belt. But we don’t think any less of them. And we wouldn’t think any less of Cain or Abel if we happened to be their neighbors- actually brothers and sisters.

c) Cain’s offering was unacceptable; Abel’s offering was acceptable.

At the time of worship, the brothers brought gifts that came from their separate occupations. Cain’s was from the fruit of the soil. Abel’s from the flocks of the field. God chose to accept Abel’s but not Cain’s.

Now this is something that has troubled Bible scholars, commentators, pastors and Sunday school teachers for thousands of years. What was the problem? We teach you to offer whatever you have to the Lord because it all belongs to him anyway. Cain was not a shepherd, he was a farmer. Abel’s offering was easily accessable- he raised the sheep.

We cannot assume that Cain offered the wrong sacrifice. God wanted his kind of offerings as well. Leviticus 2 outlines the “Grain Offerings” and how those were to be handled.

So what was the problem?

d) Cain was a man of anger; Abel was a man of faith.

Hebrews 11:4 tells us that Abel was a man of faith. In fact, he is listed as the first example of being a person of faith. What we see is Abel’s inner attitude of faith as he made the offering. Cain did not carry this inner attitude. Instead, when Cain’s offering was rejected he became visibly anger – “his face was downcast.”

Sibling rivalries happen. Last week Naomi watched one of our twin grandsons take a toy from the other twin grandson. These things seem to start early.

But let’s not miss the greater principle here: Are you an man or woman of faith in God first? If so, we don’t get smug in our right choices as Christians but we love the brothers and sisters and mom and dad in our family. Furthermore, we love our brothers and sisters within this church family. and let’s not forget our Lord’s great command of loving our neighbor as our self.

God spoke to Cain. He warned him that “sin is crouching at your door.” What did he mean?

Think of a wild animal that is in its lair. As you approach the opening this animal is ready to leap out at you. The warning is clear: beware of becoming a slave to your jealousy.

God then tells Cain that you must master it. (v. 7) Cain had allowed hostility to fester inside of him. He was seething with envy and anger.

God’s acceptance or rejection was clearly based on not only the offering itself but also on the attitude of the heart. God told his prophets on numerous occasions that He did not want sacrifices as substitutes for lives of obedience and inner righteousness.

How easy it is for us to fall into that trap. In other words, God does not want you to come to church and do the church thing as a substitute for being obedient to Him and living a life of faith.

James 1:15- “After [evil] desire has conceived it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.”

In a literal sense, Cain was allowing evil desire to become full-grown in his life. And in so doing he chose a path of no return.

2. Cain’s Path of Jealousy.

In Galatians 5:19-21 the Apostle Paul lists what he refers to as acts of the sinful nature. Among these he names “hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage and selfish ambitions.” We have to be so careful that we do not allow the devil a foothold in our lives. You see, just as God warned Cain that sin was crouching at his door, so to for any of us- if we allow certain reactions and behaviors to manifest themselves- sin will be ready to destroy our heart, soul and life. And those around us.

Cain charted a course that would lead to destruction for both him and his brother. Here is a small example of that.

a) Envy.

Have you ever saw someone achieve something and suddenly became jealous of what they received? Or did you see someone receive something and become upset that they were succeeding and you weren’t?

Have you ever been passed up for a promotion and watched someone else of less work ethic and less creativity get a raise and promotion that you though you deserved?

Have you ever watched the boss-man praise someone else for their efforts, ideas and work but he or she rarely says anything positive to you?

These kinds of things create unfriendly feelings. That’s not the problem. We all get passed up in one way or another. We all are going to feel “dissed” by the boss, our spouse, our sibling, our neighbor, our pastor or anyone else out there. It’s going to happen. I’m sure that somewhere over the last 10 years I did not give someone credit for something- not intentionally. And you might be that person.

It’s going to happen. And the unfriendly feeling we get isn’t the problem. It’s when we allow this unfriendly feeling to stir up the emotions and cause us to think constant about it.

This is what happened to Cain. Rather than go to God and figure out the problem and seek counsel from another sister or brother, Cain chose to sulk over it. And his sulking turned into…

b) Hatred.

I find it unbelievable that people can hate each other but it does happen. I find it hard to believe that even church people can find themselves caught in this vicious cycle. Why? Sin is crouching at their door and behind the sin is the hidden dragon of the devil willing to do anything to deceive the hearts of people.

Hatred is the opposite of love. Hatred speaks of division between you and someone else. Hatred creates hostility which leads to arguments, strife between the two parties and even a literal fight. The courts are filled with this and jails keep taking on people who have allowed hatred to come to full bloom.

And for Cain this hatred eventually turned to…

c) Murder.

In a day when there were no guns Cain found a way to carry out the dark thoughts of the human heart. His passionate outburst of anger became murder. The result was blood poured on the ground and how God’s heart must have broken that day.

Anyone can feel as though they would never go that far. Yes, the prisons are filled with psychotic people who kill as easily as they get dressed in the mornings. But prisons also hold people who have killed someone in an outburst of anger.

God had warned Cain. He spoke to Cain about this sin-directed pride. But Cain refused to listen.

Anytime we refuse to listen to God we will experience as Cain did…

3. Results of Sin.

Sin always has a negative result. You might feel good blasting someone’s character behind their back but somehow it will hurt you in the end.

a) An unthinkable occurrence.

Cain lures Abel into a field and murders him. Afterwards, God comes to Cain again and asks him, “Where is your brother?”

Cain responds with those now infamous words: “I don’t know. Am I my brother’s keeper?”

MacArthur points out that this is a play on words. Earlier we read that Abel kept sheep. Some versions of the Bible refer to Abel as a keeper of sheep. This is the same sense. In a way, Cain is not very repentant for what he had done. He lies about knowing where is brother is when in fact he knows what he did to him and he doesn’t care about where Abel is.

Envy turned to hatred and hatred to murder. When sin is full grown it gives birth to death.

b) An earthly punishment.

Cain is sent out to be a fugitive and vagabond. He will not succeed as a farmer. He does marry and started a city. However, he carried a mark on him that kept others from killing him. No one is sure what that mark is but it was something that warned others.

But there is something worse than the earthly punishment:

c) An eternal punishment.

Verse 16 says: “So Cain went out from the Lord’s presence…” There can be no worse punishment than to be dismissed from God’s presence. Cain’s parents, Adam and Eve, were sent out of the perfect world of the Garden of Eden because of their sin. Cain is sent out of a perfect relationship with God. A kind of spiritual death took place that day.

So what do we learn from this terrible tragedy? How can we better in our lives?

Conclusion: Practical Lessons- Winning the Battle for your soul.

There is a battle for your soul. And the devil will do whatever he can to deceive you, trip you up and destroy your life. But God provides a better way. Remember, he told Cain that he must master the sin that is crouching at his door. How do we do that?

a) Guard your emotions.

We are human beings not robots. We have very real emotions that get hurt easily. Even the strongest of men face these issues. How we handle them is of utmost importance.

Guard your emotions. Get into God’s word regularly. Pray for those who spitefully use you and say all manner of evil against you.

Guard your heart. When confronted with being wrong then admit it, apologize and seek forgiveness. And then don’t do it anymore.

Cain had every opportunity to get closer to God. He could have sought out why his offering was unacceptable. But I have a feeling he knew better. He had a heart of rebellion.

b) Value your relationships.

Value your family members, your friends, your church family and your neighbors enough to hold them close and to love them appropriately. What do I mean? Trying to control other people is a dicey issue. But loving them as God enables you to love them is the best way.

Do relationships challenge us? Absolutely. But you can love others- even that surly neighbor who wants to argue property lines with you.

c) Be victorious through Jesus Christ.

Galatians 5:22-23 speaks of the fruit of the Spirit. Those who belong to Jesus Christ live by the power of the Holy Spirit. The result is a life of “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.”

d) Learn the art of forgiveness.

You can’t really move on in life unless you know how to forgive people even when they intentionally hurt you. And you need to learn how to forgive yourself as well. (Sermon in a couple of weeks about this.

e) Live a testimony of love and grace.

As a result your life will be a testimony of love and grace. When you are wrong you admit it and people know that about you. When someone says evil about you your response are words of love and forgiveness. When the world is against you, you know that God is for you who can be against you.

Back in my Bible college days we experienced a revival of sorts. The Holy Spirit moved in the hearts of students and staff for several weeks. The altars were lined constantly as we sought desperately sought God. Chapel services were filled with testimonies of what God was doing. What an incredible time!

But the true highlight of this revival was not the altars full of people seeking God- as great as that was; it was not the testimonies of students and staff at Chapel; it was the seeking out of each other and making confession of wrong attitudes and actions.

A change took place for the rest of that school year. We became more sensitive to the things we said to each other and how we handled issues of relationships.

My life was further molded into and towards the image of Christ that semester as a result of what God was doing in the lives of others and in me.

2 Corinthians 13:5- “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you- unless, of course, you fail the test?”

What does God want you to commit to Him this morning? Are there areas of envy and even hatred towards someone else that shouldn’t be in your heart?

This is an opportunity for you to commit your heart to the Lord right now and allow the Holy Spirit to work again in your life with the love of Christ.

THE LIFE OF FREEDOM

Message for the Wesley Covenant Service

January 3, 2010

Galatians 5:1

Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage. (NKJV)

Historians of the early American colonies came up with a term called “Triangular Trade.” Most of us probably learned this in our history classes when we were in school and likely have forgotten all about it.

What was “Triangular Trade”? Triangular Trade was based on shipping. The goal of any merchant ship was not only never to arrive a port empty but to never leave a port empty. As you can see on the overhead there were three basic sets of geographic ports: Europe (primarily England), Africa (primarily the gold coastal area) and the Americas (the American colonies and the Caribbean islands). Each of these had items that the others didn’t have and needed items and goods that the others had.

For example, a ship leaving the Americas would go to England with a load of molasses, sugar and tobacco products. They would unload in England and load up guns, cloth and beer and head to Africa. Once in Africa they would then load up slaves and perhaps gold and head to the American colonies to start the process all over again.

Quite often- not always though- at the heart of the trade was slaves. Slaves would be literally hearded onto ships, packed in tightly like they were any other cargo and shipped across the Atlantic to the American colonies. This occurred for several hundred years until the slave trade was abolished by England and other nations. In fact, England would stop ships that were in the slave trade no matter what country they were from.

Thousands of slaves were captured by African tribes, delivered to the coastal ports of western Africa and traded to very eager Anglos ready to make money when they delivered them to the American colonies. The tragedy is that for so long so many tolerated slavery as “this is just the way it is.”

In fact, good Christian people owned slaves, traded and sold slaves and approved those who also participated. They literally saw nothing wrong with it.

And as I approach this whole issue of the life of freedom there are three thoughts that I want to highlight that I hope will help each of us realize that we must go beyond belief. In other words, God calls us to go deeper into this relationship through Jesus Christ that is more than just believing in Him for salvation.

1) Freedom over circumstances within your control.

I am alarmed that too many Christians have bought into that concept spiritually. That being a Christian and being a slave to a particular sin is “just the way it is.” We wink not only at the sinful behaviors of others but we actually tolerate certain aspects of it in our own lives.

a) Lust.

b) Gluttony.

c) Anger.

d) Jealousy.

e) Bitterness.

f) Pornography.

g) Critical spirit.

h) Lying.

i) Swearing.

j) Compulsive behaviors.

k) Addictive behaviors.

“But, Pastor, I’m not hurting anybody. It’s not like I’m actually killing someone by saying bad things about them behind their back. It’s not like I’m actually committing adultery because I look at someone other than my spouse with lust in my heart.”

Matthew 5:21-22 ²¹"You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' ²²But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment.

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

Well, brother and sister, Jesus didn’t see it that way. He saw the sin behind the sin. Whatever sin we commit- even in the privacy of our minds- is subject to judgment.

There is good news, brothers and sisters. Jesus paid it all. He paid the price so that you might not only have forgiveness of sins but have victory over the strongholds of life that keep you bottled up spiritually and emotionally and even physically.

The apostle Paul told the Corinthian Church that we have “weapons of our warfare that are not carnal, but might through God to the pulling down of strongholds.” (2 Corinthians 10:4)

There’s another aspect of this spiritual victory that I long to see everyone of us have and that is:

2) Freedom over circumstances beyond your control.

But even further than just simply some particular enslavement to sinful behaviors, I have found so many enslaved to circumstances that seem to be beyond their control.

a) Some are enslaved to physical and emotional disability.

b) Some are enslaved to financial pressures.

c) Some are enslaved to what other people think of them.

My hope and prayer today is that we can somehow get a sense of not only hope that God will intervene for us in these different aspects but that somehow God will deliver us to spiritual victory and true freedom in spite of our circumstances and failures.

What do I mean?

You can still have victory over your finances and not earn a penny more.

You can still have victory over your physical disability and not experience physical healing.

You can still have victory over what others think about you and they never do change their mind about you.

I believe that our Lord longs to be gracious to us this day and that He desires the very best for His children.

3) Freedom to be a different person in Jesus Christ.

The Apostle Paul writes our text verse to a group of churches in the region known as Galatia. These believers were being imposed upon by some Jewish Christians with the idea that they had to adhere to the Jewish law in order to be Christians. Paul addresses this issue very forcefully and in such a way that there is no mistake about the basis of a Christian’s life: “I am crucified with Christ and yet not I that live but Christ in me.” (Galatians 2:19-20)

He makes very clear to these Christians who used to live under the law that if they are saved by faith how can they go back to the old life under the law?

He says something similar later in his letter to the Romans 6:1. “Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? God forbid!”

The greater point for us to realize is that as Christians our lives are much different from the life we had before we got saved.

But now that you are a believer in Christ you are a new creature; old things have passed away and all things have become new.

Neil T. Anderson has three very important concepts that he constantly teaches and I have co-copted into my thinking as a Christian. These three Christian ideals have helped me so much over the years to overcoming various situations, circumstances and (yes) sin.

(The next three or four Wednesday Prayer meetings will be covering these three concepts.)

a) I am accepted.

Romans 5:1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ paid the price of his life so that I could be accepted by God. I am God’s child. Furthermore, I am a friend with God. All because I have been bought with a price.

b) I am secure.

I am so grateful for my Baptist in-laws clinging to the “once saved always saved” belief. I don’t agree whole-heartedly with the idea but yet I appreciate it because there was a time I needed to believe that. I struggled for many years with a performance orientation concept that made me feel as though I was not saved half the time.

Something else I discovered along the way that I have needed to cling to is that the devil cannot bring me harm. All of hell’s fury may come but my soul is safe in the arms of God.

1 John 5:18 ¹⁸We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the one who was born of God keeps him safe, and the evil one cannot harm him.

c) I am significant.

As a lost and lonely teenager I struggled for years with understanding my importance to God. Into my twenties and early thirties I had a hard time feeling very important or needed. And all this time I was telling my teens how important they were and yet I struggled within myself in feeling very important.

But something changed as the Holy Spirit slowly began to gain access to my life. It was a campmeeting with Adrian Depres as he preached what it meant to be in Christ. And he pointed out Colossians 1:27 ²⁷To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

Suddenly everything began to change in my thinking. Here I was at the ripe age of 36 years old and I learned that the mystery of the gospel message was Christ in me.

And now on my cell phone wallpaper you will read “Christ in me.” Or “I am in Christ.”

I have come to realize more and more and I’m still realizing this truth that I am significant to God so much that he gave his one and only son.

And now I am God’s workmanship created in Christ Jesus to do good works. (Ephesians 2:1)

So what does this mean? I am free in Christ Jesus. The victory has been won by him for me.

And so on this day, as we participate in this Wesley Covenant Service...

Conclusion: What is it that you need God to do in your life?

Galatians 5:13- For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.

And so today in this Wesley Covenant Service I am calling on us as a body of Christians to believe God and what He tells us in His Holy Word about us and the freedom that is ours for the living.

Do you believe that God not only saves but saves to the uttermost?

Do you believe that God can and does deliver men and women from the enslavements of sinful behaviors- drugs, alcohol, sexual addictions such as pornography and homosexuality, and the like?

Do you believe that God can and does set men and women free from the enslavement of a bitter spirit, unforgiveness towards others and gossip?

Do you believe that God can reach down into your circumstances- both those you do control and those you do not- and do a new work in your heart and life?

I do.

Embrace this freedom through Jesus Christ.

Galatians 5:1 ¹ Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.

Not only…

Live the life of Christ that you were intended to live…

BUT

Love the life of Christ that you are called to live.