Isn’t it awesome that God is so merciful? After all, we all mess up, and who doesn’t need a God who understands and provides out of His mercy and grace another chance to work things out? It is really difficult to live in this world and not become influenced or stained by it. Thus, we need a God who is full of mercy and grace! Instead of surrendering as a failure, I can be made new and have a whole new outlook on things!
Isn’t it awesome that God is so just? After all, there are so many things in this world that are shady and deceitful! How many times are we taken advantage of because someone has their own agenda and will take whatever means they deem necessary to accomplish their goal? Sometimes it is hard to know what standard to live by, but having a God who is just helps me determine morality, truth and what is right because I have a measuring stick with which to evaluate things.
We serve a God who is both just AND merciful!!! Consider the way God presents himself to Moses when He reveals His glory to him on Mt. Sinai, as recorded in Exodus 34:6-7:
6 Then the LORD passed by in front of him and proclaimed, "The LORD, the LORD God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; 7 who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations."
Do you see both the justice and mercy of God portrayed as He speaks to Moses? God says these things about Himself!!! The context of this proclamation is that God is angry enough to destroy the Israelites due to their sin with the golden calf, but Moses begs Him to continue walking with them. Moses has returned to Mt. Sinai with two tablets of stone to have the 10 Commandments inscribed on them and he will return to the Israelite camp with a glow that frightens the people as a result of his time in the presence of God. Even the physical representations of tablets of stone (Law) and the glow (presence of God) show both characteristics of His nature!
How do these two characteristics work together? Does His justice override His grace, or does His grace override His justice? Is it possible for the two to work in balance? This morning, as we look at the story of Cain and Abel, we are able to see both aspects of this great God we serve. The justice of God will not accept Cain’s sacrifice, while the grace of God will warn him of sin crouching at his door waiting to have him. The justice of God will hold Cain accountable for the murder of his brother, prohibiting him from using the ground to grow crops and making him a wanderer and a vagrant, while the grace of God will protect Cain from someone finding him and killing him.
Perhaps this is what makes our understanding of God and His ways so difficult at times. It is hard to balance these two characteristics! When I swing to the side of justice, I struggle with what God does through His grace (Why would God protect a murderer?). When I swing to the side of grace, I struggle with God’s justice (Why wouldn’t God accept Cain’s sacrifice?) Yet, God exhibits both characteristics with great balance. Isn’t it awesome that God is so merciful and just!!!
To listen to sermon, click Serving God on My Terms.
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Sunday, October 21, 2007
The Quest to Live Forever
It is amazing the types of things people in our society will do in a quest to stay young and “live” forever! Have you heard the one about Ted Williams, the former Red Sox Baseball player? Upon his death, his son had his head removed from his body and had both head and body frozen in a preserved state for the day that medical advances can bring him back to life and restore him to good health. To commemorate this decision, (I promise I am not making this up) the Bisbee-Douglas Copper Kings Minor League Baseball team held a “Ted Williams Popsicle Night” on June 3, 2003 (the one year anniversary of his being put into cryogenic stasis), in which the first 500 fans in attendance received a free Popsicle—Is nothing sacred anymore?!?!?
Then there is David Copperfield, the magician, who claims he discovered the “Fountain of Youth” on one of the Bahaman Islands he recently purchased for the price of almost $50 million. In a phone interview on CNN in August, 2006, Copperfield said, “You can take dead leaves; they come in contact with the water; they become full of life again. Bugs or insects that are near death come in contact with the water, they’ll fly away.” Copperfield admits he has hired scientists to examine and experiment with the waters, but why has nothing reputable been reported, if this is real?
Robert Freitas, a nano-robotics theorist, suggests we could see the day when tiny medical nano-robots travel through our bloodstream to find and destroy dangerous things like bacteria and cancer cells and other potential hazards. Other scientists are proposing that through cybernetics there will come a time when human consciousness will be able to be uploaded onto a computer system where an individual will live indefinitely in a virtual reality (sort of like a Matrix concept).
Isn’t it amazing that there is within us this desire to live forever? Perhaps, even more amazing is how our Father in heaven has once again responded to a need we have and provided a means for it to be fulfilled! It does not involve cryogenics, cybernetics, nano-robotics, or even a Fountain of Youth! What it does involve is a thing called the Tree of Life. This is what we will study about this morning. However, from what we will see, God is very particular about who He will allow to feast from its fruit. I pray you will see the heart of God as we study about the RESTORATION God brings us through in order to make us ready to live forever.
To listen to sermon, click Eating from the Tree of Life.
Then there is David Copperfield, the magician, who claims he discovered the “Fountain of Youth” on one of the Bahaman Islands he recently purchased for the price of almost $50 million. In a phone interview on CNN in August, 2006, Copperfield said, “You can take dead leaves; they come in contact with the water; they become full of life again. Bugs or insects that are near death come in contact with the water, they’ll fly away.” Copperfield admits he has hired scientists to examine and experiment with the waters, but why has nothing reputable been reported, if this is real?
Robert Freitas, a nano-robotics theorist, suggests we could see the day when tiny medical nano-robots travel through our bloodstream to find and destroy dangerous things like bacteria and cancer cells and other potential hazards. Other scientists are proposing that through cybernetics there will come a time when human consciousness will be able to be uploaded onto a computer system where an individual will live indefinitely in a virtual reality (sort of like a Matrix concept).
Isn’t it amazing that there is within us this desire to live forever? Perhaps, even more amazing is how our Father in heaven has once again responded to a need we have and provided a means for it to be fulfilled! It does not involve cryogenics, cybernetics, nano-robotics, or even a Fountain of Youth! What it does involve is a thing called the Tree of Life. This is what we will study about this morning. However, from what we will see, God is very particular about who He will allow to feast from its fruit. I pray you will see the heart of God as we study about the RESTORATION God brings us through in order to make us ready to live forever.
To listen to sermon, click Eating from the Tree of Life.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
A Father’s Discipline
As a parent, it is sure nice to get beyond the stages where corporal forms of punishment are needed to teach obedience and reinforce various life lessons that are vital for the safety and maturation of our children. As Tyler, Christopher and Whitney mature into young adults; it is nice to see our relationship shifting towards more of a friend/respect bond rather than the parent-child/obedience bond we lived with for many years. It is not that they don’t still live with the parent-child/obedience model, but through empowerment and maturation our relationship has moved to a new level—one which I welcome and embrace!
I believe God feels the same way! Training up children is difficult and takes a lot of hard work. Maybe that is why the whole life process begins with something called “labor”. Discipline takes wisdom, patience, perseverance, and, well, discipline to do it well. Fortunately, God demonstrates all of these qualities throughout the Scriptures as He trains up His people to know Him and His ways. The reason these qualities are necessary is because discipline is meant to be more teaching than punishment (discipline and disciple come from the same root word)!
That brings us to the interesting situation going on in Genesis 3 when God brings forth His big stick of punishment upon the serpent and the first man and woman as a result of their disobedience. Certainly, He is teaching He is in control and must be obeyed, but what other lessons is He trying to get across through His choice of discipline? I mean, what does increased pain in childbirth and difficulty in getting the ground to produce have to do with eating fruit they weren’t supposed to? This would be like taking my car to get the brakes fixed and the mechanic working on the horn to make it louder, thinking that would solve my problem, right? It just doesn’t make sense!
Perhaps there is more here than meets the eye at first glance? This morning we will see God’s response to mankind when we mess up. It is a powerful story of love and provision as God refuses to give up on mankind. There are lessons for mankind to learn, but He demonstrates He is in this for the long haul! He will not give up on us! Have I whetted your appetite to the text we will look at this morning in the sermon? (And you probably thought I would explain it all here. Sorry, but you have to wait for the sermon to see how this all plays out.)
To listen to sermon, click How Does God Respond When We Mess Up?
I believe God feels the same way! Training up children is difficult and takes a lot of hard work. Maybe that is why the whole life process begins with something called “labor”. Discipline takes wisdom, patience, perseverance, and, well, discipline to do it well. Fortunately, God demonstrates all of these qualities throughout the Scriptures as He trains up His people to know Him and His ways. The reason these qualities are necessary is because discipline is meant to be more teaching than punishment (discipline and disciple come from the same root word)!
That brings us to the interesting situation going on in Genesis 3 when God brings forth His big stick of punishment upon the serpent and the first man and woman as a result of their disobedience. Certainly, He is teaching He is in control and must be obeyed, but what other lessons is He trying to get across through His choice of discipline? I mean, what does increased pain in childbirth and difficulty in getting the ground to produce have to do with eating fruit they weren’t supposed to? This would be like taking my car to get the brakes fixed and the mechanic working on the horn to make it louder, thinking that would solve my problem, right? It just doesn’t make sense!
Perhaps there is more here than meets the eye at first glance? This morning we will see God’s response to mankind when we mess up. It is a powerful story of love and provision as God refuses to give up on mankind. There are lessons for mankind to learn, but He demonstrates He is in this for the long haul! He will not give up on us! Have I whetted your appetite to the text we will look at this morning in the sermon? (And you probably thought I would explain it all here. Sorry, but you have to wait for the sermon to see how this all plays out.)
To listen to sermon, click How Does God Respond When We Mess Up?
Sunday, October 7, 2007
He is out to Destroy Us
The Scriptures warn us over and over again of the enemy we have working to destroy us! We are told he is a murderer from the beginning and the father of lies (John 8:44). We are warned he is our adversary and he prowls around like a roaring lion seeking those he can devour (I Peter 5:8). We are warned to put on the armor of God because of the schemes of the devil through which he will try to destroy us (Ephesians 6:11-13). The truth is, HE IS PLAYING FOR KEEPS AND HE PLAYS DIRTY!!!
There is an old story about how Eskimo’s hunt wolves that parallels the twisted strategy the devil uses to get us to destroy ourselves. It is really quite gruesome, but it shows the danger we are in when we do not control our lusts. What the Eskimo does is take a sharpened knife with a double-edged blade and dip it in blood and freeze it. He does this many times over in order to make a frozen Popsicle of blood around the knife blade. Once this is done, he buries the knife with the handle side down, leaving only the Popsicle of blood exposed. The wolf then smells the blood and begins hunting for it. He begins licking the blade and the coldness of the frozen blood numbs his tongue so that as he gets down to the sharpened blade and slices his tongue, he does not realize that it becomes his own blood that he is feasting upon. Ultimately, the wolf bleeds to death feeding upon his own blood.
This a sad picture, but how many of us fall into the same traps by the devil and actually wind up destroying ourselves because we cannot control our lusts? This morning we will be introduced to someone else in the Garden of Eden who was seeking control. This serpent, who we know as the devil, uses lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and pride to shipwreck our faith. He sets the temptations before us that will entice us to get out of control so we destroy ourselves! What is interesting in the picture provided in the Scriptures is how consistent he is with the same warfare over and over again. Why do we keep falling for his schemes?
Do you want to hear the good news? I have a picture hanging in my office that was given to me by some great friends. It is a picture of Daniel sitting against a wall in the lion’s den with a lion nose to nose with him staring him in the eyes. I love this picture because it reminds me of the control my God has even over the “roaring lions seeking someone to devour” and how He can hold the devil at bay! Perhaps the real question is whether He can hold ME at bay. We will see the way Jesus handles the temptations of the devil this morning, BUT will we learn from His example? Our enemy is out to destroy us! Fortunately, our God is much bigger than our enemy! “Submit therefore to God! Resist the devil and he will flee from you! Draw near to God and He will draw near to you!” (James 4:7-8)
To listen to sermon, click The Devil's Triangle.
There is an old story about how Eskimo’s hunt wolves that parallels the twisted strategy the devil uses to get us to destroy ourselves. It is really quite gruesome, but it shows the danger we are in when we do not control our lusts. What the Eskimo does is take a sharpened knife with a double-edged blade and dip it in blood and freeze it. He does this many times over in order to make a frozen Popsicle of blood around the knife blade. Once this is done, he buries the knife with the handle side down, leaving only the Popsicle of blood exposed. The wolf then smells the blood and begins hunting for it. He begins licking the blade and the coldness of the frozen blood numbs his tongue so that as he gets down to the sharpened blade and slices his tongue, he does not realize that it becomes his own blood that he is feasting upon. Ultimately, the wolf bleeds to death feeding upon his own blood.
This a sad picture, but how many of us fall into the same traps by the devil and actually wind up destroying ourselves because we cannot control our lusts? This morning we will be introduced to someone else in the Garden of Eden who was seeking control. This serpent, who we know as the devil, uses lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and pride to shipwreck our faith. He sets the temptations before us that will entice us to get out of control so we destroy ourselves! What is interesting in the picture provided in the Scriptures is how consistent he is with the same warfare over and over again. Why do we keep falling for his schemes?
Do you want to hear the good news? I have a picture hanging in my office that was given to me by some great friends. It is a picture of Daniel sitting against a wall in the lion’s den with a lion nose to nose with him staring him in the eyes. I love this picture because it reminds me of the control my God has even over the “roaring lions seeking someone to devour” and how He can hold the devil at bay! Perhaps the real question is whether He can hold ME at bay. We will see the way Jesus handles the temptations of the devil this morning, BUT will we learn from His example? Our enemy is out to destroy us! Fortunately, our God is much bigger than our enemy! “Submit therefore to God! Resist the devil and he will flee from you! Draw near to God and He will draw near to you!” (James 4:7-8)
To listen to sermon, click The Devil's Triangle.
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