SPRING FORWARD

Maybe you are like me and when you hear the words spring forward you go ugh. Maybe you even start taking a few naps knowing that you're going to lose an hour sleep. Or maybe you live in denial hoping at the last second they'll change their mind and decide to fall back again.

Well, yes in just two Saturdays we will have to move the clock forward one hour.

And although there are other advantages to this, the main one I think about is that turkey season is just around the corner. However, instead of thinking negatively,  I want to challenge us to remove that ugh response and think about something different when we hear the term spring forward.

Now, in my simple mind, spring turkey season is equivalent to what I want you to think about however I don't want you to think about turkeys when you  hear the term spring forward. When we hear the term spring forward I want you and I to think about the new heaven and new earth, That our heavenly father has promised He is preparing for us.

And to answer all the hunter’s questions out there, though I don't really know If there will be a Spring turkey hunting in the new heaven and the new earth, I think we won't care.

So from now on whenever you hear spring forward what you really should be thinking about is the coming of the kingdom In its entirety!  God's redemption plan completed fully for all eternity! We're not supposed to dwell on it but I think it does us good every once in a while to remember and meditate upon it. What better day, than the day we lose an hour springing forward is there to stop and think about that moment when we will see the new heaven and the new earth?

Time will no longer be an issue for those of us in Christ! We will dwell with God eternally!

So as you wrestle with moving your clocks forward from 2am to 3 am, pause for just a moment, and think about the glory of God, spring forward if you will, for just a moment, revel in His promises! I think you might be overcome with such gladness and joy and gratefulness that maybe just maybe you will lose some of the edge you had about losing an hour of sleep! Sweet dreams! And don’t forget to Spring forward.

Be A Lover of His Word!

February is the Love month.

As a young lad, I was that guy who always scared off girls by giving them too much attention. I bought cards, flowers, chocolates, basically the works. I thought girls liked or loved getting things and some do. However I quickly, (I really mean quickly over many years) learned that being overwhelming isn’t exactly the way to reach your goal of having a girl befriend you.

A girl, whether she admits it or not, really does want a nice guy to take interest in her. She likes having her door opened, she likes someone who will listen but also ask good questions, questions she would be interested in answering. She also likes compliments on how she looks, like new shoes, earrings, hairstyle etc. She also likes to be respected, honored, and to be defended. Oh sure there are many, many other things a girl likes, like chocolate, shopping, reading, watching that favorite movie or tv show together but we really don’t have time to discuss the entirety.

So you’re not looking to date right now, or maybe you are already married(happily of course) and you say why all this mushy gushy stuff or maybe you are a lady or a young lady who says yeah I’m a girl I already know all this. Good point.

However we can all look at these desires, these likes if you will and learn something about ourselves. We want to be wanted like this for a reason. We are broken people and we long to be redeemed, recovered and put back together and called lovely! Isn’t that what you are looking for? Someone to see you for who you really are, to understand your thoughts, your intentions, your secret longings and then to not just understand them but will fulfill them. My wife and I can’t do that for each other, but we are blessed to know God the Father, by the grace that is in Jesus Christ. We are able to find comfort in any and all affliction by power of His Word.

This month at New Hope we will begin to dig deeper into Romans. I want to invite you to fall in love with His Word. Be a lover of God’s word starting this month. It’s okay if you’ve already abandoned your reading plan or messed up your New Year’s resolution, win today.

As you read God’s word my prayer is that it isn’t a checklist, to do item that gets crossed off. But it is an opportunity for you to visit the cross and revel and wonder and truly feel the love of God revealed to us in the good news of Jesus Christ. Go deeper into the gospel this month. Don’t play hard to get, or buy the lie that you’re not pretty enough or lovable enough to accept God’s free gift of grace. Be loved and love God and others as Paul starts Romans, “Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, including you who are called to belong to Christ,” Look in the holy Scriptures, you’ll see you are LOVED.

You Can Forget A Lot of Things, but REMEMBER THIS!

If you are like me, you can forget a lot of things. I have a terrible, “REMEMBERY”, or memory. I’m all the time forgetting to go visit people, or call people that are sick or have had surgery or on and on I could go. I’m terrible at sending birthday cards and anniversary cards too!

I’m not proud of that fact, but I’m not going to lie about it or make excuses for it either.

Other things I forget are how important it is to be patient and follow directions. I do not like reading directions. It drives me “BATTY”! Actually I’ve learned I do much better if someone else reads the directions and tells me what to do. Plus, this gets the job done faster and with less stress, I don’t have to stop working to look at the next step, my reader can just keep on keeping on and I can stay focused on putting together whatever it is I need to do.

As long as I’m confessing I’ll be honest, I don’t remember to read my Bible every day. This is truly appalling to me since I am in the ministry and I have plenty of Bibles around me, you would think this would be a no brainer! But I admit there are days when my Bible remains closed. I hate those days! Actually, one of my greatest goals is to not let that happen anymore, but I’m sure I’ll forget one day between here and my last day.

Then there is the grocery store, which I usually do pretty good at not forgetting things, however, it is getting to the point that if it is not on the list, I forget it! I hate it when I go to the grocery store with two or three items in my head that I just HAVE TO HAVE, and then I get there and run into someone I know, start talking, then I get hungry and start thinking about other items that would be good to get and then before you know it I’m halfway home and I forgot to get one of the two or three original items! ARGHH!

Of Course, I can’t forget the children, well I shouldn’t forget the children but there are a lot of days I do that too! I’ll be working and all of sudden I look up and I’m 10 minutes late for picking them up from school. YIKES! I mean seriously who forgets to pick up their kids? Answer, ME!

Well, you have seen that I forget a whole lot of things, maybe you feel better about your memory now, I hope so! Either way, I really hope that you don’t ever forget this. You and I can laugh and cry and encourage each other to work on and improve on our memory skills, or just be there for one another when we realize somebody else isn’t as good of a “REMEMBERER” as us. But there is one thing we must all, always remember, our Heavenly Father is absolutely, positively, madly in love with us, He wants us to know that He loves us. He wants you to know, that even when you are forgetful, unfaithful, and just down right lost, He isn’t! He remembers you, He wants a relationship with you and He knows right where you are and exactly what you need. He is wild about you, He loves you, even when you can’t remember.

Vessels of Grace, Climb On In…

Have you ever thought of yourself as a vessel? Probably not! Even if you have I doubt you have spent days or weeks meditating on the idea of being a vessel. So here’s your challenge, for the month of February, (no I didn’t choose February because it has less days…but that was good thinking on your part.) take each day and begin your day by recognizing you are a vessel.

Now as you begin to recognize your “vesselness” you can even begin each day by seeing yourself climb in the vessel. Maybe I’m ahead of myself here, you may be asking, “What in the heck are you talking about?” “A vessel? Me?” “What?”

Okay, Okay, I agree I jumped in (no pun intended there) a little quick. So let’s back that ship up and try again.  If you have been saved by God’s grace through faith and you have repented of your sin and trusted Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord then you are a child of God. You have been adopted into the family of God. As a sinner saved by God’s grace, God has not just forgiven you of your sins but has redeemed you and made you righteous in His sight by given you Christ’s righteousness.

What does that mean? It means that because of God’s grace being poured out on your life you can expect God to use your life to bring glory to Himself. This means that God has prepared good works for you and is equipping you to do them. In other words you are a vessel of God on the sea of grace. God’s grace powers you, the vessel, by His grace. You are sent out to accomplish His will.

So back to the beginning we go. You awake and are ready for the day. You climb on in the vessel for the day. Where will you go today? You may have plans, ideas, thoughts, goals and so on, but remember all of these may change. First and foremost you must realize that you are a vessel today and you must be willing to go where Christ leads, where His Holy Spirit directs, where His grace enables you to go.

How do you know you are going the right way, doing the right thing, saying the correct words, trusting fully? Take your plans and submit them to the Lord, bath them in prayer. Sometimes we may think we are headed in the wrong direction and we may be right. But God can even use our bad decisions and choices to teach us about how much He loves us. He is able, more than able.

If our hearts and minds and souls really, I mean really set on glorifying God, loving God, then flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, truth, faith, love and peace. This is a full life. This is a life that will bring freedom unimaginable. This is a life that is fulfilling, exhilarating, and truly full of satisfaction. This is a life that is not lacking, not wanting, not disappointing, while rewarding it may be filled with pain and agony and angst and hard work and sorrow, but it is a life that is worth it.

God’s grace is amazing, His Holiness complete. Maybe you are unsure about being a vessel, maybe you don’t like the idea of riding on a sea of grace, too radical, too simple, too out of control for you. I understand, I surely do, I’ve been there, I’ve thought that, all I can say is watch my vessel, better yet climb on in and ride with me a while. I pray you’ll see His grace is free, His grace is freeing, His grace is healing, His grace is redeeming, His sea of grace is the only place my vessel can sail victoriously, climb on in, you’ll see.

Learning to Like Listening

 

As a youth guy one of the hardest things to do is continually stay up with the latest youthful craze.

Honestly I quit trying about 6 years ago when my kids went to school. They will let me know when I’m uncool and when whatever I say is out of date.

I use to think as the youth guy I needed to know their lingo and be able to ball with them till dark or be the best at capture the flag or get the most people out in paintball to fit in, to have an opportunity to minister to these modern day students.

As I get older and I continually learn lessons the hard way, I’ve come to realize one of the main keys to ministry is to get people to a place where they want to talk to you and you want to listen to them.

In other words to be good at ministry I’ve learned I’ve got to like listening to people. This may seem easy, just shut your mouth, ask a couple of intriguing questions and away you go. But the sticking point is learning to like listening to people.

Frankly, some people are just so introverted it takes something like a car wreck to get them to say “Wow!” Many teenagers would rather answer you with a yes, no or a nod or a text message or just ignore you all together. So how do you learn to like listening to people that don’t want to talk to you in the first place.

Easy by showing them God’s grace, by sharing the love of God with them, by talking about the Gospel with them and how it is relevant to their life. How do you do that? Engage them with real questions. Not just, “Hey how are you doing?” But questions like, “Do you know how to change a flat tire? Would you like to learn?” Or questions like, “How did you get that scar? What is the one thing you a more scared of than anything else? Have you ever mailed someone a letter?, tell me about that letter.”

Then take that story or answer they tell you and weave it into the Gospel. It doesn’t always work but often times you can say Wow, that’s cool how God orchestrated that meeting just at the right time so you could ….that reminds me of how much God loves me so much that He sent His only Son to die for me. God’s pretty amazing that way, don’t you think?

Learn to tune in to what people are saying, it is important to them, even more important than what you are thinking about saying back to them, learn to pick out key things and be able to identify with what people say, be an engaged listener. Find something to like about what people are saying and affirm to them that you care about what they are saying, even if you don’t agree with them.

I’m done talking now, remember I’m trying to learn to like listening, so go ahead say whatever you like…The floor is yours!

Most Recent Sermon

This was my last sermon I preached at New Hope, you can listen to it at www.newhopepca.com It was titled, God’s Gift Giving.

Jonah-Habakkuk-Jesus

God has given us an entire Bible filled with men and women and their stories that tell His story, but today I want to take a look at God’s gift giving as we look at three men and their interactions with God.

As we look at Jonah, Habakkuk and Jesus let’s look at how each of these men interacted with God, and while we do that I want you to see how you interact with God in very much the same way as these men did. All while understanding that God’s gift giving ability is perfect.  Many of us exchange gifts over the Christmas season, with family, friends, co-workers and for the most part many of us are excited to receive gifts, even if it something that we didn’t really think we wanted or needed or maybe even cared for we usually receive that gift with a smile, a genuine thank you and try to look on the bright side giving the person who was given the gift a break and realizing, well at least they tried. Unfortunately many of us don’t receive gifts from the ultimate gift giver as well. Well to be down-right honest many of us, me included get grumpy and complain to God about the way He operates. I think that this comes from a limited view of who God is. As we look at Jonah and Habakkuk and Jesus I want you to see how they viewed God, I really believe it is not until God is infinitely bigger than we think that we start to understand how thankful we should be for Him and His blessings in our life.

Our OT professor at RTS says if he were to simply title Genesis it would be about  Blessings or God Blessing the Nations. And the book of Ruth would be From Emptiness to Fullness, and maybe not title it Ruth but Naomi. So today as we attempt to do the impossible again; Fly through a couple books  in the OT, I hope you see the context I’m trying to frame out for you. Jonah isn’t just some story about a guy who got swallowed by a fish, and Habakkuk isn’t just a book in the OT you look at and think that’s a weird way to spell that, but they are two books specifically placed in the OT so that we might get a deeper and better understanding of who God is. That through studying these texts we might glorify God and enjoy Him. That the doctrine of grace might be etched once again in our minds, our hearts  and our actions. Today I want to frame our discussions with this thought in mind. God is a gift giving God, His mercy and grace surround us. His Love is ever over us, His blessing are new every day, He alone is worthy. We cannot comprehend why, how, when who what or where God gives his gifts but we know that Salvation is a gift, from God to us, To you, From God, So as we look at Jonah and Habakkuk and Jesus this morning let’s remember that this is God’s gift to us, His Word, preserved all these years, and given to us today to unwrap and unpack.

First let’s turn to the book of Jonah and see how Jonah was blessed by God even though he didn’t really recognize it. If I had to sum up Jonah- I would say the book is about Living for Me, In God’s case He is trying to show Jonah that living for me is a great idea! And In Jonah’s case living for me is a terrible idea!

We are going to read bits and pieces of this book at a break neck speed so just hold on. Jonah 1:1-6

God gives Jonah an amazing opportunity, go tell NINEVEH to repent (I want to save them) I’d feel pretty good about that and so would you right? Jonah was like nope going to Tarshish! And he fled the presence of the Lord. You’ve never done that right? God said do this and you say nah I really think it would be better to do this. It usually is really simple when God asks us to do something we can either Rejoice or Sulk, so here is Jonah called by God to do something. He said, Nah I think I’ll go this way the complete opposite direction that God was calling him. Jonah although he knew that God existed, had a GIGANTIC problem, He constantly forgot that God was God, creator of the universe, all powerful, all mighty, Sovereign, God wanted Jonah to be obedient not because He was a taskmaster, but he wanted Jonah to be blessed, God wanted Jonah to see that He was God not Jonah. The ultimate gift giver was like here Jonah here is an easy one, enjoy this gift. So Jonah attempted to flee from God. What do we do when God calls us, well maybe I should think it over, maybe I should let someone more talented than me do that, maybe God was mistaken he didn’t really want me, really, I don’t think that’s a healthy thought.

You see God never changes, if you are disobedient God can still use your disobedience for His good, your bad decisions doesn’t make God happy, but that also won’t stop God from getting the glory He deserves.

Jonah 7-17 Jonah had gotten on a boat and a great storm arose, all the other sailors said call out to your god and make him stop, they threw cargo over and finally Jonah said throw me into the sea. And in His mercy instead of letting Jonah die, God appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah.

He was in the belly of a fish for three days and nights, So here is where we usually wise up, sometimes it takes getting swallowed by a giant fish to see, okay God you’re right I’m wrong, whatever you ask I’ll do. And it seems Jonah at first look has come to his senses.  But look in verse 7,8,9 Jonah seems a little haughty in his prayer,” when my life was fainting away I remembered the LORD, and my prayer came to you in your holy temple. Those who pay regard to vain idols forsake their hope of steadfast love. But I with the voice of thanksgiving will sacrifice to you, what I have vowed I will pay,” (notice the focus on what Jonah is saying, I remembered, My prayer, I will pay… very self centered, Then finally Jonah cried out to God, after three days, He remembered Salvation belongs to the Lord! The Lord spoke to the fish and it vomited Jonah out on dry land.

Jonah had an opportunity to get back on track. How would Jonah treat this gift.

Well, He went to the people of Nineveh and told them if they didn’t repent in 40 days God would overthrow Nineveh, they all repented, EVERYONE OF THEM! What a great celebration, God withdrew the disaster, God was pleased, but Jonah was angry? WHAT IS UP WITH THIS DUDE? He was mad at God for being gracious to his enemies, he was mad at God for saving an entire nation? Kinda selfish don’t ya think? Then he asks the giver of life to take his life? Who does Jonah sound like, a selfish punk like me. 

Sometimes I shake my fist at God and wonder why me God? Why are these circumstances happening to me? Why do people that I thought were my friends treat me this way? Why haven’t I….You see my view of God is way to small, I know better and frankly so do you, God is more than able to use a tough situation and use it to bless me, to bring Glory to His name. We see that God ends  Jonah by showing Jonah I’m a God who cares about you, get over yourself, I also care about others 120,000 people in Nineveh and their animals that I spared. I’m God. I think it’s okay if I do that, I don’t need your permission or approval, and your disappointment can’t stop me from loving you either.  Which me are you living for?

 

Habakkuk-Living for Thee,

Many of us Live like Jonah, God gives us clear instruction and we run 180 degrees the opposite direction, others of us live like Habakkuk trusting God yet perplexed at why God would choose to do things His way and not in the way we had hoped or expected. Many of us live our lives, standing and crying out to God, “What are you doing?” “Why is this happening to me?” “God don’t you care about me? Don’t you care about righteousness?” How can this be used for your good?”  

Habakkuk 1:5  “Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told.”

How right God is on this point, He knows us so well doesn’t He, I mean after all He created us! He loves us, He is all knowing, He is,  yeah you get the point, or do you. Maybe you’re like me and need to be reminded A LOT!

After reading Habakkuk this afternoon ask yourself this question, How did Habakkuk treat his relationship with God?” then ask an even harder one “How do I treat my relationship with GOD?”

If you are a believer in Christ Jesus this morning, and if you are not, then you should be TODAY, but if you are or if you’re gonna be later on, you should really think this through, The God the ultimate gift giver has given me His love, God Loves me, and He tells me He is at work in my life and around me in the lives of others, in ways that are mysterious, in ways that are miraculous, in ways that are perplexing and puzzling, in ways that exhilarating and surprising, in ways that are absolutely oblivious to me. He is also bigger than I can imagine, more than able to do whatever He wants. Why do I approach this relationship so different than others, why do I press pause with God, why do I press rewind, Why can’t I enjoy each moment I’ve been given, trusting that GOD, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, really is doing a work that I wouldn’t believe even if He told me?

As I was studying this week I noticed that Jonah and Habakkuk are what we have labeled the minor prophets. And that Jonah is five books from the top and Habakkuk are five books from the bottom. Both are similar in outline too, The book opens with a complaint against God, and God giving an answer, then a prayer, then a response to Who God is. I wish we had more time to explore this but we will save that for later and focus on the one major difference. Jonah ended angry with God, angry enough to die, Let’s look at how Habakkuk ends. He too was complaining to God and God said listen Habakkuk I got this, and Habakkuk remembers in his prayer, right you are the God whose splendor covers the heavens, you are the God who split the rivers and made the moon and sun stand still, you are the God of salvation.      Look at Habakkuk 3:17-19 Habakkuk Rejoices in the Lord: 17 Though the fig tree should not blossom,    nor fruit be on the vines,the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold  and there be no herd in the stalls, 18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord;  I will take joy in the God of my salvation.19 God, the Lord, is my strength; he makes my feet like the deer's;  he makes me tread on my high places.                                   To the choirmaster: with stringed[a] instruments.

God makes me feet like the HINDS!, In Calvin’s commentaries, I’m paraphrasing here,  Calvin says not so We can fly over and dominate our enemies, but so that we can climb any mountain, any obstacle any thing that comes our way we can walk through it with God! The hope that God gives us in Jesus, the help Jesus has given us in the Holy Spirit, THE GIFT THAT GOD HAS GIVEN YOU AND ME, the Gospel, the GOOD NEWS is our feet can move, we can walk, one foot can go in front of the other, God the Lord is our strength, he will make us tread in the high places. LET US REJOICE IN THE LORD!!

And so we come to Jesus-The living Son of God, King, Brother… God’s gift and gift giver

 Let’s contrast Jonah and Jesus. Jesus was called to go to a foreign land and share a message. Repent and believe. Did Jesus run in the opposite direction? No but he could have. Jesus was tossed about during society, many people questioned who is this man that thinks He is the Son of God? Jesus was executed, on a cross, innocent, he bled and died, and on the third day he rose again. God used Jonah to save a nation, God sent Jesus His own Son to be sacrificed for all Nations, for His Kingdom. Jesus sought God’s will first, Jonah sought his own will. Jesus prayed to God before His death Father, “if you are willing remove this cup from me, nevertheless not my will, but yours, be done.” One disobedient son of God, God uses to save a nation, One obedient Son of God, God uses to save and usher in His Kingdom. What’s the difference, One Son had the utmost trust for His Father, He knew His Father loved Him and was willing to do whatever it took to obey, the other disobeyed God because He didn’t think God had his best interest at heart. Jesus being the Son of God knew how big God was,is. Jonah didn’t have a clue, We are so like Jonah in this regard, we think we know God, especially some of us well studied Presbyterians we know God and all how He works, okay, well I’m a lot more like Jonah and so are you. I’m not saying I don’t believe in Sanctification, I wholeheartedly do! I think I’ve grown in my Christian life tremendously but I still think my vision of who God is, so much closely relates to Jonah than Jesus. But the Good news for me and you today is that God has Given us JESUS!! And with Him, we can know the father more and more Listen to this verse, one of my favorite verses in Scripture, from a little known OT book called Zephaniah, Zephaniah 3:17 says, THE LORD GOD IS IN YOUR MIDST, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing. God, WANTS TO REJOICE OVER YOU WITH GLADNESS, to quiet you with HIS LOVE, to EXULT OVER YOU WITH LOUD SINGING,  Are you running from HIM? Or toward Him? Look at me! He uses ordinary people like Jonah, like me, like you, to accomplish his objectives, His given us His Word, His Son, to bring about Salvation, to build His Kingdom! We have got to start rejoicing in Jesus like Habakkuk and not sulking about ourselves like Jonah.

This is real life. Are you being like Jonah or Jesus. When God calls you to do something, do you look for the easy way out like Jonah? Or are you willing to lay it all on the line like Jesus? Think about that this you know the next time when you are called to stand up for Jesus or just be silent, think about this the next time you are battling yourself with well I know I should do this but I really want to do this, who will you follow? Are you going to put your trust in God or self? Is your God big enough, is the God you believe in Big enough that you always have questions, or do you have God all figured out? Make it your mission to be more like Jesus in all areas of your life. How do you do that?, by doing the right thing, by putting first things first, God’s first period, His ways are right, period, follow Him, believe in Him, worship Him in all areas of your life, or don’t. There really is no in between.

 

 God’s a gift giver, AND A PRETTY DOG GONE GOOD ONE AT THAT!, He is the giver of Salvation! He has given up His Son so that we might be forgiven, saved, reborn, revitalized! Jesus gave us the Holy Spirit! We have the third person of the trinity at work in us! And if you are not a believer you have the third person of the trinity at work amongst you, if not already in you. God is constantly blessing His people, and not monetarily or earthly but with every spiritual blessing, God is alive and He is not far off. ARE YOU KIDDING ME, THE HOLY SPIRIT! GOD HAS GIVING YOU THE HOLY SPIRIT!!!  But sometimes we insist on looking at US, we insist on being JONAH on having it our way, God says I’m God, I’m the gift giver, when I give you a gift, ACCEPT IT! LOVE IT! USE IT! SHARE IT! I’m GOD I think I might know what I’m doing. Why are you complaining? What have you done? Did you create this gift? Did you have any ownership in this gift? SERIOUSLY! Don’t be a Jonah a miss out on the gift, We must be more like Habakkuk that sees that it is ALL GOD! That God is where our joy is, that He is the God of our Salvation! Accept the greatest gift God has ever given, Let Jesus be your strength your joy your salvation this Christmas! Quit trying to be good enough or waiting for the right time, Start today, unwrap your gift, if you’ve already opened your gift, maybe it was 50 years ago, just remember God never changes, that gift is still as good as it was then, enjoy Him today, share Him with others, be blessed by God’s gift giving.

Sermon on Jonah, Habakkuk and Jesus

Sermon 12-2-12- God’s Gift Giving

Jonah- Living for me...-Habakkuk-Living for Thee...-Jesus-The Living God

God has given us an entire Bible filled with men and women and their stories that tell His story, but today I want to take a look at God’s gift giving as we look at three men and their interactions with God.

As we look at Jonah, Habakkuk and Jesus let’s look at how each of these men interacted with God, and while we do that I want you to see how you interact with God in very much the same way as these men did. All while understanding that God’s gift giving ability is perfect.  Many of us exchange gifts over the Christmas season, with family, friends, co-workers and for the most part many of us are excited to receive gifts, even if it something that we didn’t really think we wanted or needed or maybe even cared for we usually receive that gift with a smile, a genuine thank you and try to look on the bright side giving the person who was given the gift a break and realizing, well at least they tried. Unfortunately many of us don’t receive gifts from the ultimate gift giver as well. Well to be down-right honest many of us, me included get grumpy and complain to God about the way He operates. I think that this comes from a limited view of who God is. As we look at Jonah and Habakkuk and Jesus I want you to see how they viewed God, I really believe it is not until God is infinitely bigger than we think that we start to understand how thankful we should be for Him and His blessings in our life.

Our OT professor at RTS says if he were to simply title Genesis it would be about  Blessings or God Blessing the Nations. And the book of Ruth would be From Emptiness to Fullness, and maybe not title it Ruth but Naomi. So today as we attempt to do the impossible again; Fly through a couple books  in the OT, I hope you see the context I’m trying to frame out for you. Jonah isn’t just some story about a guy who got swallowed by a fish, and Habakkuk isn’t just a book in the OT you look at and think that’s a weird way to spell that, but they are two books specifically placed in the OT so that we might get a deeper and better understanding of who God is. That through studying these texts we might glorify God and enjoy Him. That the doctrine of grace might be etched once again in our minds, our hearts  and our actions. Today I want to frame our discussions with this thought in mind. God is a gift giving God, His mercy and grace surround us. His Love is ever over us, His blessing are new every day, He alone is worthy. We cannot comprehend why, how, when who what or where God gives his gifts but we know that Salvation is a gift, from God to us, To you, From God, So as we look at Jonah and Habakkuk and Jesus this morning let’s remember that this is God’s gift to us, His Word, preserved all these years, and given to us today to unwrap and unpack.

First let’s turn to the book of Jonah and see how Jonah was blessed by God even though he didn’t really recognize it. If I had to sum up Jonah- I would say the book is about Living for Me, In God’s case He is trying to show Jonah that living for me is a great idea! And In Jonah’s case living for me is a terrible idea!

We are going to read bits and pieces of this book at a break neck speed so just hold on. Jonah 1:1-6

God gives Jonah an amazing opportunity, go tell NINEVEH to repent (I want to save them) I’d feel pretty good about that and so would you right? Jonah was like nope going to Tarshish! And he fled the presence of the Lord. You’ve never done that right? God said do this and you say nah I really think it would be better to do this. It usually is really simple when God asks us to do something we can either Rejoice or Sulk, so here is Jonah called by God to do something. He said, Nah I think I’ll go this way the complete opposite direction that God was calling him. Jonah although he knew that God existed, had a GIGANTIC problem, He constantly forgot that God was God, creator of the universe, all powerful, all mighty, Sovereign, God wanted Jonah to be obedient not because He was a taskmaster, but he wanted Jonah to be blessed, God wanted Jonah to see that He was God not Jonah. The ultimate gift giver was like here Jonah here is an easy one, enjoy this gift. So Jonah attempted to flee from God. What do we do when God calls us, well maybe I should think it over, maybe I should let someone more talented than me do that, maybe God was mistaken he didn’t really want me, really, I don’t think that’s a healthy thought.

You see God never changes, if you are disobedient God can still use your disobedience for His good, your bad decisions doesn’t make God happy, but that also won’t stop God from getting the glory He deserves.

Jonah 7-17 Jonah had gotten on a boat and a great storm arose, all the other sailors said call out to your god and make him stop, they threw cargo over and finally Jonah said throw me into the sea. And in His mercy instead of letting Jonah die, God appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah.

He was in the belly of a fish for three days and nights, So here is where we usually wise up, sometimes it takes getting swallowed by a giant fish to see, okay God you’re right I’m wrong, whatever you ask I’ll do. And it seems Jonah at first look has come to his senses.  But look in verse 7,8,9 Jonah seems a little haughty in his prayer,” when my life was fainting away I remembered the LORD, and my prayer came to you in your holy temple. Those who pay regard to vain idols forsake their hope of steadfast love. But I with the voice of thanksgiving will sacrifice to you, what I have vowed I will pay,” (notice the focus on what Jonah is saying, I remembered, My prayer, I will pay… very self centered, Then finally Jonah cried out to God, after three days, He remembered Salvation belongs to the Lord! The Lord spoke to the fish and it vomited Jonah out on dry land.

Jonah had an opportunity to get back on track. How would Jonah treat this gift.

Well, He went to the people of Nineveh and told them if they didn’t repent in 40 days God would overthrow Nineveh, they all repented, EVERYONE OF THEM! What a great celebration, God withdrew the disaster, God was pleased, but Jonah was angry? WHAT IS UP WITH THIS DUDE? He was mad at God for being gracious to his enemies, he was mad at God for saving an entire nation? Kinda selfish don’t ya think? Then he asks the giver of life to take his life? Who does Jonah sound like, a selfish punk like me. 

Sometimes I shake my fist at God and wonder why me God? Why are these circumstances happening to me? Why do people that I thought were my friends treat me this way? Why haven’t I….You see my view of God is way to small, I know better and frankly so do you, God is more than able to use a tough situation and use it to bless me, to bring Glory to His name. We see that God ends  Jonah by showing Jonah I’m a God who cares about you, get over yourself, I also care about others 120,000 people in Nineveh and their animals that I spared. I’m God. I think it’s okay if I do that, I don’t need your permission or approval, and your disappointment can’t stop me from loving you either.  Which me are you living for?

 

Habakkuk-Living for Thee,

Many of us Live like Jonah, God gives us clear instruction and we run 180 degrees the opposite direction, others of us live like Habakkuk trusting God yet perplexed at why God would choose to do things His way and not in the way we had hoped or expected. Many of us live our lives, standing and crying out to God, “What are you doing?” “Why is this happening to me?” “God don’t you care about me? Don’t you care about righteousness?” How can this be used for your good?”  

Habakkuk 1:5  “Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told.”

How right God is on this point, He knows us so well doesn’t He, I mean after all He created us! He loves us, He is all knowing, He is,  yeah you get the point, or do you. Maybe you’re like me and need to be reminded A LOT!

After reading Habakkuk this afternoon ask yourself this question, How did Habakkuk treat his relationship with God?” then ask an even harder one “How do I treat my relationship with GOD?”

If you are a believer in Christ Jesus this morning, and if you are not, then you should be TODAY, but if you are or if you’re gonna be later on, you should really think this through, The God the ultimate gift giver has given me His love, God Loves me, and He tells me He is at work in my life and around me in the lives of others, in ways that are mysterious, in ways that are miraculous, in ways that are perplexing and puzzling, in ways that exhilarating and surprising, in ways that are absolutely oblivious to me. He is also bigger than I can imagine, more than able to do whatever He wants. Why do I approach this relationship so different than others, why do I press pause with God, why do I press rewind, Why can’t I enjoy each moment I’ve been given, trusting that GOD, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, really is doing a work that I wouldn’t believe even if He told me?

As I was studying this week I noticed that Jonah and Habakkuk are what we have labeled the minor prophets. And that Jonah is five books from the top and Habakkuk are five books from the bottom. Both are similar in outline too, The book opens with a complaint against God, and God giving an answer, then a prayer, then a response to Who God is. I wish we had more time to explore this but we will save that for later and focus on the one major difference. Jonah ended angry with God, angry enough to die, Let’s look at how Habakkuk ends. He too was complaining to God and God said listen Habakkuk I got this, and Habakkuk remembers in his prayer, right you are the God whose splendor covers the heavens, you are the God who split the rivers and made the moon and sun stand still, you are the God of salvation.      Look at Habakkuk 3:17-19 Habakkuk Rejoices in the Lord: 17 Though the fig tree should not blossom,    nor fruit be on the vines,the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold  and there be no herd in the stalls, 18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord;  I will take joy in the God of my salvation.19 God, the Lord, is my strength; he makes my feet like the deer's;  he makes me tread on my high places.                                   To the choirmaster: with stringed[a] instruments.

God makes me feet like the HINDS!, In Calvin’s commentaries, I’m paraphrasing here,  Calvin says not so We can fly over and dominate our enemies, but so that we can climb any mountain, any obstacle any thing that comes our way we can walk through it with God! The hope that God gives us in Jesus, the help Jesus has given us in the Holy Spirit, THE GIFT THAT GOD HAS GIVEN YOU AND ME, the Gospel, the GOOD NEWS is our feet can move, we can walk, one foot can go in front of the other, God the Lord is our strength, he will make us tread in the high places. LET US REJOICE IN THE LORD!!

And so we come to Jesus-The living Son of God, King, Brother… God’s gift and gift giver

 Let’s contrast Jonah and Jesus. Jesus was called to go to a foreign land and share a message. Repent and believe. Did Jesus run in the opposite direction? No but he could have. Jesus was tossed about during society, many people questioned who is this man that thinks He is the Son of God? Jesus was executed, on a cross, innocent, he bled and died, and on the third day he rose again. God used Jonah to save a nation, God sent Jesus His own Son to be sacrificed for all Nations, for His Kingdom. Jesus sought God’s will first, Jonah sought his own will. Jesus prayed to God before His death Father, “if you are willing remove this cup from me, nevertheless not my will, but yours, be done.” One disobedient son of God, God uses to save a nation, One obedient Son of God, God uses to save and usher in His Kingdom. What’s the difference, One Son had the utmost trust for His Father, He knew His Father loved Him and was willing to do whatever it took to obey, the other disobeyed God because He didn’t think God had his best interest at heart. Jesus being the Son of God knew how big God was,is. Jonah didn’t have a clue, We are so like Jonah in this regard, we think we know God, especially some of us well studied Presbyterians we know God and all how He works, okay, well I’m a lot more like Jonah and so are you. I’m not saying I don’t believe in Sanctification, I wholeheartedly do! I think I’ve grown in my Christian life tremendously but I still think my vision of who God is, so much closely relates to Jonah than Jesus. But the Good news for me and you today is that God has Given us JESUS!! And with Him, we can know the father more and more Listen to this verse, one of my favorite verses in Scripture, from a little known OT book called Zephaniah, Zephaniah 3:17 says, THE LORD GOD IS IN YOUR MIDST, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing. God, WANTS TO REJOICE OVER YOU WITH GLADNESS, to quiet you with HIS LOVE, to EXULT OVER YOU WITH LOUD SINGING,  Are you running from HIM? Or toward Him? Look at me! He uses ordinary people like Jonah, like me, like you, to accomplish his objectives, His given us His Word, His Son, to bring about Salvation, to build His Kingdom! We have got to start rejoicing in Jesus like Habakkuk and not sulking about ourselves like Jonah.

This is real life. Are you being like Jonah or Jesus. When God calls you to do something, do you look for the easy way out like Jonah? Or are you willing to lay it all on the line like Jesus? Think about that this you know the next time when you are called to stand up for Jesus or just be silent, think about this the next time you are battling yourself with well I know I should do this but I really want to do this, who will you follow? Are you going to put your trust in God or self? Is your God big enough, is the God you believe in Big enough that you always have questions, or do you have God all figured out? Make it your mission to be more like Jesus in all areas of your life. How do you do that?, by doing the right thing, by putting first things first, God’s first period, His ways are right, period, follow Him, believe in Him, worship Him in all areas of your life, or don’t. There really is no in between.

 

 God’s a gift giver, AND A PRETTY DOG GONE GOOD ONE AT THAT!, He is the giver of Salvation! He has given up His Son so that we might be forgiven, saved, reborn, revitalized! Jesus gave us the Holy Spirit! We have the third person of the trinity at work in us! And if you are not a believer you have the third person of the trinity at work amongst you, if not already in you. God is constantly blessing His people, and not monetarily or earthly but with every spiritual blessing, God is alive and He is not far off. ARE YOU KIDDING ME, THE HOLY SPIRIT! GOD HAS GIVING YOU THE HOLY SPIRIT!!!  But sometimes we insist on looking at US, we insist on being JONAH on having it our way, God says I’m God, I’m the gift giver, when I give you a gift, ACCEPT IT! LOVE IT! USE IT! SHARE IT! I’m GOD I think I might know what I’m doing. Why are you complaining? What have you done? Did you create this gift? Did you have any ownership in this gift? SERIOUSLY! Don’t be a Jonah a miss out on the gift, We must be more like Habakkuk that sees that it is ALL GOD! That God is where our joy is, that He is the God of our Salvation! Accept the greatest gift God has ever given, Let Jesus be your strength your joy your salvation this Christmas! Quit trying to be good enough or waiting for the right time, Start today, unwrap your gift, if you’ve already opened your gift, maybe it was 50 years ago, just remember God never changes, that gift is still as good as it was then, enjoy Him today, share Him with others, be blessed by God’s gift giving.