Author: Joy Lotito

Nobleton Community Church
March 17, 2024
Matthew 15:29-39 continuing with 16:1-12
Pastor Paul V Lehmann

Listen to live audio here

We see in these verses:

THE GRACIOUSNESS OF JESUS WHO IS THE BREAD OF LIFE

Jesus leaves the area of Tyre and Sidon where he healed the Canaanite woman’s daughter, and goes south again towards Galilee, Then he went up on a mountainside and sat down. Great crowds to him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute and many others. And laid them at his feet, AND HEALED THEM .

The people were amazed when they saw this. We see Jesus relieving every kind of human need. He has compassion for the 4,000 men plus the women and children, (once again at least 12 or 15,000 people). Some have tried to say that the feeding of the 5,000 in chapter 14, and this incident of 4,000 are the same but there are distinct reasons why that is totally unlikely. In the 14th chapter of Matthew they are told to sit on the grass, so it was in the spring time when their was grass in Palestine. In this passage they sit on the “ground” which makes it almost 6 months later near the end of the summer, when the grass is brown or gone. It was curing this time that Jesus and the disciples walk up north to Tyre and on to Sidon. With the question of the season in mind—-it could have been almost 6 months for them to make the trip to Sidon. It could have been done in two weeks with continued walking. But Jesus needed the time to teach his disciples—so he probably took his time.

Also the first feeding was mostly Jews present, but here it is in the Decapolis where there are mostly Gentiles. It is that fact that explains the curious phrase in verse 31, “They ‘praised the God of Israel.” To the Gentile crowds this was a demonstration of the power of the God of Israel. There is another thing that supports the fact that these are two different incidents, in two different locations. In the feeding of the 5000 the baskets which were used to take up the fragments are called by a different name (kophinoi); in the feeding of the 4,000 they are called (sphurides). The kophinos was a narrow-necked, flask shaped basket which Jews often carried with them, for a Jew often carried his own food, because he might be compelled to eat food which had been touched by Gentile hands and was therefore unclean. The he kind of basket that a Gentile would was much more like a hamper; it could be big enough to carry a man, and it was a kind of basket that a Gentile would use. The disciples once again ask an unbelievable question; (verse 37) “In this remote place, where can we get enough bread to feed all of these people?

Jesus is very patient with them. —“How many do you have” –7 loaves and a few small fish. The wonder of this account is that in these healings and in this feeding of the hungry, we see the mercy and the compassion of Jesus going out to the Gentiles. Here is a kind of symbol and foretaste that

: The bread of God was not to be confined to the Jews; that the Gentiles —that’s us too—were also to have their share of him who is the living bread. The gospel, the good news about Jesus as “the bread of life” —“the abundant life or life in all its fullness. – as well as -the way, and the truth,

It not only was not to be confined to the Jews—–it is not to be confined to the Church.— This what we so often do—–keep it to ourselves.

The disciples really didn’t get the significance of all of this, until after Pentecost, when Peter was called by God to go to the home of Cornelius who wasn’t a Jew, but he was what was called—–a” God Fearer” . A Gentile who was open to the God of the Jews. Peter’s “Jewish life’ was turned upside down at this man’s house. He was told he could eat food that he had never eaten before, and he saw this Gentile give his life to Jesus Christ.

So in our text:

1. We see Jesus healing physical disability. The lame, the maimed, the blind and the mute. Jesus cares about our bodily pain, and those who bring health and healing to people today, are still doing the work of Jesus Christ. Whether it is through modern science or through prayer for divine healing.
2. We see him feeding the hungry. We see him giving all he has to relieve physical hunger and physical need. Jesus is infinitely concerned for peoples bodies, just as he is for their souls. Here we see the power and the compassion of God going out to meet the many needs of the human situation.

Alfred Edersheim (a Jewish historian who believed in Jesus points out in his series of books on “The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah” —that in three successive stages of Jesus’ ministry, he ended each stage by setting a meal before his people.

First, there was the feeding of the 5,000, that came at the end of his ministry in Galilee, for Jesus was never to teach and preach and heal in Galilee again.

Second, there was this feeding of the 4,000. This came at the end of his brief ministry to the Gentiles, beyond the bounds of Palestine—first in the districts of Tyre and Sidon and then in the Decapolis.

Third and last, there was the Last Supper in Jerusalem, when Jesus came to the final stage of the days of his flesh.

Jesus always left people with strength for the way; always he gathered people to him to feed them with the living bread. Always Jesus gave them himself before he moved on.

And still today he comes to us offering us also the bread which will satisfy the immortal hunger of the human soul, and in the strength of which we shall be able to go all the days of our life.

THE PROBLEM IS THAT WE NEVER ARE SATISFIED BECAUSE WE DON’T TURN TO JESUS FOR OUR SATISFACTION.

Now in Matthew 16:1-12 —We see the Pharisees and Sadducees looking for a sign. People today are always looking for miraculous signs. Something different than Jesus Christ. They can’t stand the thought that He is the only way. Everyone from different ideologies, and religions often find a common ground in that they are all against Jesus Christ the Son of God. The Pharisees and Sadducees get together to come against Jesus. Hostility, makes strange bedfellows. The Pharisees live life according to the details of the oral and scribal law, The Sadducees rejected the oral and the scribal law completely, and accepted only the written words of the Old Testament as their law of life. The Pharisees believed in angels and in the resurrection of the body and the Sadducees did not, (an opposition which Paul made use of when he was on trial before the Sanhedrin (Acts 23:6-10),

And in this case most important of all—the Pharisees were not a political party and were prepared to live under any government which would allow them to observe their own religious principles; the Sadducees were the small, wealthy aristocracy, who were the collaborationist party and were quite prepared to serve and co-operate with the Roman government, in order to retain their wealth and their privileges. Further,

The Pharisees looked for and longed for the Messiah;

the Sadducees did not.

It would have been almost impossible to find two more different sects and parties; and yet they came together in their overwhelming desire to eliminate Jesus.

ALL ERROR HAS THIS IN COMMON—THAT IT IS HOSTILE TO CHRIST

Maybe not the good kind Jesus the prophet –teacher that walked the earth, but Jesus the Messiah the Son of God.

The demand of the Pharisees and the Sadducees was for a sign. The Jews had a way of wanting a prophet or a leader to authenticate his message by some abnormal and extraordinary sign. (back in Matthew 12:38-40)

The problem was they were blind to the greatest sign —Jesus himself. He used the old weather saying about the red sky. Have you ever heard? “Red sky at night sailors delight—-Red sky in the morning, sailors take warning.”

They knew very well the sign of a red sky in the evening presupposed fine weather the next day, but in the morning meant that a storm was on the way. BUT THEY WERE BLIND TO THE SIGNS OF THE TIMES.

Jesus told them that the only sign they would receive was the sign of Jonah.

What Jesus is saying is that God’s sign is Jesus himself and his message. It’s like he is saying to them “In me you are confronted with God and with the truth of God” What more could you possible need?

But they were like so many today. They were looking for something else to satisfy them. Jesus, wasn’t enough. Who he was, what he did, and what he tuahg didn’t satisfy them, because their heart’s weren’t right. We too often forget that today. When we evangelize. If the Holy Spirit hasn’t already begun to prepare someone’s heart, all of our efforts to tell them about Jesus is in vain.

The Pharisees and Sadducees, had all other writings of the prophets to know the truth of God. They of all people should have had tremendous faith, and had their hearts open to Jesus, but they didn’t

A pagan Phoenician women, that hardly knew anything about Jesus had great faith in him. She was desperate for her daughter who was demonized. The Gentiles who flocked to Jesus in the Decapolis had great faith. They discovered that Jesus could satisfy them, He would meet their physical and spiritual need.

What is it that you count on today to satisfy you?

Is Jesus everything to you? The one who completely satisfies and is your Lord and Savior, the one you always rely on, —-or just someone you know some facts about

Nobleton Community Church
March 10,2024
Pastor Karen Erickson

Listen to live audio here

No written sermon this week

S-submit to the Lord
T-trust in the Lord with all your Heart
O-overcome
N-no weapon formed against me shall prosper
E-enter His gates with thanksgiving and His
courts with praise; give thanks to him and
praise His name

Nobleton Community Church
March 3, 2024
Text: James 5:13-20
Pastor Paul v Lehmann

Listen to live audio here

James reminds us to pray for everything, just like Paul tells us to pray in all circumstances. I heard about a pastor who told his congregation that God doesn’t want our “frivolous” prayers. Like praying for a parking place, or helping you to find lost or misplaced keys, or anything that you have lost. You know how I feel about that. I believe that the Bible teaches us to pray about everything. It doesn’t bother one bit to have you call out to him for help even in the most mundane situations. He doesn’t want us to cry out to him in a crisis but rather to be in the habit of praying all the time. Our problem is the latter. We only think he will maybe help us when things are really bad. Ruth Graham’s advice. “Pray when you feel like it, for it is a sin to neglect such an opportunity. Pray when you don’t feel like it, for it is dangerous to remain in such a condition.”
MAKE PRAYER YOUR FIRST RESPONSE TO EVERYTHING.
Too often we have a tendency to use prayer only in panic situations. Like the man who was working on his roof and lost his balance and began to slide down. He grabbed at an air vent sticking up, but he missed it, and continued to slide. He grabbed at a shingle, but it broke off in his hand and he continued to slide. When he was almost to the edge of the roof, he cried out in desperation: “Lord help me!” Suddenly, he felt something grab the cuff of his pants. As he dangled over the edge, 30 feet above ground. He looked to see what had happened and he said; “ Never mind, Lord. My pants got caught on a nail. I’m Ok, I don’t need your help after all.”
That’s the problem with a crisis-driven prayer life. When the crisis goes away, so does the motivation to pray.
James says that prayer should be a part of every aspect of life—when we’re happy, sad, troubled, and sick, we need to take our concerns and our joys to God. Peter and Paul made this same suggestion.
In Philippians 4:6 “Don’t worry about anything; instead pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank him for all he has done.”
Ephesians 6:18 “Pray at all times and on every occasion in the power of the Holy Spirit. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all Christians everywhere.”
You can’t trivialize prayer: As far as God is concerned, there are no unimportant parts of your life.
Now what we saw in Ephesians —is we are to pray IN THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT—THAT IS THE KEY.
In the beginning of our text; verses 13-14, James tells us that if we are in trouble. We should pray. If we are happy, we should praise the Lord, and singing praises is a form of prayer. If we are sick, (bedfast. Can’t get out to church or prayer meeting or anywhere there might be someone to pray for us—–we are to call for the elders (the leaders of the church). He doesn’t say if you have enough faith call for someone to come to your side to pray, he says that others should come, and the PRAYER OF FAITH WILL SAVE THE SICK PERSON. This isn’t a cold or flu or something of that nature but a sickness or infirmity which is keeping them down. This prayer offered in faith will raise them up. An added benefit is that if they have sinned they will be forgiven. (that’s why it is added in verse 16; “pray for each other so that you may be healed.”
Now hear is an interesting statement: “ The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” Verse 17 is the example given. It is about Elijah—James says; “he was a human being, just like us.”
Look at I Kings 17: 1. Elijah is confronting King Ahab telling him that; “as the Lord God of Israel lives, (before I stand RSV) whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain (for these years RSV) the next few years (NIV) except by my word”. Then in chapter 18 we read:…The word of the Lord came to Elijah “In the third year saying; “Go show yourself to Ahab and I will send rain.”
Back to James “ He prayed earnestly (fervently (RSV) that it wouldn’t rain, and it didn’t rain for 3 years. He prayed again that it would rain and the heavens gave rain and the earth produced its crops.
It is important to realize why James indicates that Elijah was a man “just like us”—–he was human. James says he prayed but in the account in I Kings nothing is mentioned about prayer. I believe the answer is the fact that the Holy Spirit came upon the prophets and they stood before God inquiring God’s will for all kinds of things. You recall that Elijah later prayed in chapter 18, for God to reveal his power against Bael.
WHAT WAS THE SECRET ACCESS OF SEEING GOD’S POWER?
First of all we must have faith. Faith and trust in Jesus Christ as our Savior.
We must also, as I have told you many times, that Jesus who dwells within us when we receive him and ask him to come into our lives by his Holy Spirit must then have control of what we do.
There has to be contact with God. On the older cars there was a carburetor and sometimes the “points” had to be replaced. In French they are called “contacts.” Most cars today have a fuel injection system, but there still has to be contact with the fuel to propel the motor. It’s like the electricity wiring in your house. You have to turn the switch on in order to make contact so that the lights will come on. Our “contact” must be with God —- To access his power—we must PRAY, and THE HOLY SPIRIT in us is released and gives us access to this power to accomplish God’s will. PRAYER is what releases his power.
God wants us to communicate with him about what is on our heart, He also wants to make his will and his heart known to us. If we let him, and if we are in constant communication with him he will do this. When we pray we must know what his word says if we are to know his will. We know when we pray for unsaved people to be saved, that that is his will. The Bible tells us that he is not willing for any to perish. This doesn’t mean that everyone is automatically saved, but it is God’s desire that they be saved. They still must individually put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ, in order to be reconciled to God That is why it was necessary for him to die on a Cross, so that he—the perfect sacrifice for our sins, could make it possible for us to be forgiven. We can experience new life in Christ because of his resurrection from the dead. Now we can have victory over sin, death (the grave).
So, just as much as we know that he wants all to be saved, he also wants to answer our prayers about sickness and healing when we ask in faith believing. We can know this by the witness of his Spirit within us. In verse 15 of chapter 5 of James when we pray for people: —“prayer offered in faith will heal the sick and the Lord will make them well.”
That’s a bold statement, and one that begs the question; then why don’t people get healed every time? To this question there are three BAD answers;

1. It must not be God’s will
2. The person doesn’t have enough faith to be healed.
3. God no longer heals people today.
   The Bible disputes each of these arguments, but that doesn’t prevent people from using them in a pinch. We have a need to compartmentalize all aspects of life. We tend especially to do that in the area of healing. We like formulas, guarantees, and instant results. We want to be able to explain the mysteries of God in a few pithy phrases. Also, when it comes to prayer, many of us would love to be able to tell God what to do at any given moment—and be assured that he will fulfill our bidding.
   Verse 16 says, “The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and wonderful results. We are only righteous because of Jesus.
   Tony Evens ( and African American pastor in Dallas, TX ) tells about an evangelistic crusade he held at Brice Stadium on the campus of South Carolina University some years ago. There were about 15-20,000 people there, but rain was predicted. The black storm clouds began to form and there was thunder. There were other pastors there and they all prayed that God would keep the rain back, and Tony says he prayed a typical “safe” prayer. That God would hold off the rain, and that they would be able to have at least some of the service. Then a little 5’ 1” lady came to the platform and asked if she could pray. They said sure we need all the prayer we can get. She began confronting God with the facts. Explaining how they knew it was his will to hold this meeting. Reminding God of all the hours and hard work that has gone into the preparations. Also that the gospel needed to be preached to all these people who were in attendance. You have command over the weather when you choose. So therefore Lord, I “command” you to not allow this rain to interrupt this meeting. I pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen.
   The clouds got darker the thunder got louder, andt the rain came up to one end of Brice Stadium,—-split literally, and half went to want side and the other half to the other outside of where the people were, It joined again at the other end of the Stadium, but not one drop fell where the people were, and many accepted Christ that night.
   James 4:2 tells us; “You do not have because you do not ask God.”
   Our relationship with God is the same as a father’s relationship with his child. When we pray, God wants to give us whatever it is we ask for. Some of the things we ask for aren’t good for us, but some are, that’s why we must know the Word and what God’s will is.
   Now many people think because of God’s Sovereignty, we can’t “command” him to do anything. This may be true in some cases, but when we know God’s will we can pray his word, and pray the things we know to be fact.

Nobleton Community Church
February 25, 2024
Matthew 18:1-4
Pastor Paul V Lehmann

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In the gospel of Matthew there are a few recurring themes: True spirituality; living by faith; and achieving greatness. All of these themes overlap to some extent. Matthew 18 begins with the disciples re-opening these issues again by asking Jesus a question:

At that time the disciples came to Jesus and said, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”

In other words, “What does it mean to be a five-star Christian?” Or another way you might say it is: “What does it mean to be truly spiritual in God’s eyes…to be truly holy?”

In the next three chapters of Matthew, Jesus teaches about the nature of holiness. What does it mean to be holy in God’s eyes? How does one become “the greatest in the kingdom?” This is the topic we’ll be addressing, and I’m going to give away the ending right now — I’ll let you know how this will end. Becoming a five-star Christian — becoming the greatest in God’s kingdom — has almost everything to do with how you treat others.

The Bible says that when Jesus was asked this question, he called a young child forward to stand with them and he said…

I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”

These verses, three words jump out at us: “Unless you change.” Jesus spoke these words to his disciples — men who had been following him for almost three years; men who had already performed miracles in his name; men who would ultimately turn the world upside down with the message of the gospel.

These were great men, and Jesus said to them, “Unless you change…” These words teach us a primary principle in becoming holy; this may seem rather obvious, but it’s a principle that must be noted.

IN ORDER TO BECOME HOLY, YOU MUST CHANGE.

The Bible teaches that we are born in sin, that we are born sinners, that we are, in our natural state, separated from God. He is good, we are not. We may make the occasional stab at goodness, but without experiencing a life-transformation, we will never become truly holy.

Just like the disciples, when we make the decision to follow Jesus, that’s where the process of change begins, it’s not where it ends. When you make the decision to follow Jesus, he comes into your life, he wipes away the past, he cleanses you of your sins, and he gives you a new life. At that point, you begin a journey into holiness.

I want to make something clear: for each and every one of us, it is a long journey. In fact, it is a lifelong journey. As long as we live, we must be 3 engaged in the process of change. As long as we have breath, there will be things that we need to eliminate from our life and things we need to add to our life in order to become more like him. The question, then, that we must ask ourselves is not “do I need to change anything about myself?” but rather, “what do I need to change about myself in order to live a life more pleasing to God?” And I can guarantee that he has an answer for each one of us. In today’s text, he spells out the first change we must make…

“Unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Become like little children. That’s it. Do you want to be holy? Do you want to be a top-tier Christian — the greatest in God’s kingdom? Then you have to change; you have to become like a little child. What does that mean — to become like a child?

Today we’ll look at three characteristics of child-like faith. I want to quickly point out that he said that we’re to be child-like, not child-ish. It’s not that we don’t grow in the knowledge of his Word, it’s not the we become pouty and petulant and kick and scream when we don’t get our way. He’s not telling us to imitate the worst behavior of some children, he’s telling us to develop the attitude of a child .The first attitude is….

HUMILITY
Verse 4 Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 4 Have you ever noticed how our attempts at humility are often laden with pretentiousness? Oftentimes our efforts are focused on doing things that make us appear humble, rather than striving for true humility.

There’s a joke about a pastor who one day was overcome with a sense of humility and entered into the sanctuary and fell on the altar saying, “Oh, Lord, I’m nothing. I’m nothing.”

The associate pastor heard the commotion and followed suit, kneeling beside the pastor, saying, “Oh Lord, I’m nothing, I’m nothing.”

Then the youth director showed up, heard the other pastors praying and he joined in, “Oh Lord, I’m nothing, I’m nothing.”

The associate then tapped the pastor on the shoulder, pointed at the youth leader, rolled his eyes and said, “Get a load of who thinks he’s nothing.” Too often our efforts at humility are merely surface level efforts; we want to look humble more than we want to be humble. We think that humility is defined by the car we drive or the clothes we wear or our physical posture. For example, the Rule of St. Benedict, written hundreds of years ago, says…

“A monk should be not easily moved or quick to laughter…when a monk speaks he should do so gently and without laughter, humbly, gravely and with few and reasonable words…a monk should always show his humility to all who see him…in the monastery, in the garden, when traveling, in the field, or wherever he may be, whether sitting, walking or standing, he should always keep his head bent down, his gaze fixed to the ground.” [Rule of St. Benedict]

The Rule of St. Benedict teaches many other things about humility that are quite valuable, but this is often the only part we pick up on — that humility is about staring at your shoestrings. And, of course, it’s much more than that.

Jesus said, “Whoever humbles himself like this child…” How does a child humble himself?

For starters, a child is not pretentious. Children are not likely to put on airs; they’re most often straightforward and honest about who they are, and they accept others the same way.

I mean, have you ever met a class-conscious child? Of course not. Put a kid with rich parents on a playground, and he’ll make friends with the poor kids. A child will also make friends with children of other races; they accept everyone as they are — until they’re taught differently. Children aren’t pretentious. They don’t see themselves as being more than they really are; they don’t see others as being less than they really are.

Charles Swindoll gave a good example of this. He told about some kids who built a playhouse and posted these rules on the door:

1. No one acts big.
2. No one acts small.
3. Everyone acts medium. Do you want to develop the humility of a child? Act medium towards everyone. Treat everyone as your equal. It’s been said that humility doesn’t mean that you think less of yourself, it means that you think of yourself less. Don’t be the most important person 6 in your world; develop the humility of a child — treat others as your equal. Act medium.

Jesus said that to enter the kingdom of heaven, we must become like a child. One way we become like a child is through humility. Another way is through…

TEACHABILITY

it’s not until they become teen-agers that people begin to think they know everything. Children remain quite teachable. And have you ever noticed how much little children love to learn? When you ask a child, “Do you want to practice your ABC’s?” they’ll never say, “No, thanks, not today. I’ve got too much on my mind and I just can’t deal with it right now.” Instead, they say, “YEAH!” and they sing that song over and over and over again.

And when you offer to read a book to a little child, they never say, “Do I have to hear that story again? We’ve been through that book a thousand times. Go get the encyclopedia and read that to me.” Instead, little children absorb those books like every time is their first time. They love the process of learning: “That’s a cat, that’s a dog; that’s yellow, that’s blue…” and on and on.

And have you ever tried to complete a household project with a child around? They’re between you and what your work, asking, “What are you doing? Why did you do that? What is this for? Can you show me how to do it?”

Kids aren’t just teachable, they’re enthusiastically teachable. Have you ever met a first grader who didn’t love school?

This is the same attitude we must bring to the Christian life. We must be enthusiastically teachable.

The prerequisite of this is that we must first acknowledge that we don’t know everything. For some, this is very difficult.

In some churches, there are some people who believe that they are more spiritual than anyone else in the church, including the pastor. For them the teaching is never deep enough, the worship is never intense enough, and they just don’t get much out of church. These people are rarely involved in serving others and tend to church hop.

In every church I’ve been in there is another group of people who have a dynamic walk with Christ, who leave each Sunday service exhilarated, and who are accomplishing things for God between Sundays

There is never any overlap between group A and group B, because they represent two completely different mindsets — one group is teachable, one isn’t.

Now folks, I may not be the greatest preacher in the world —— but I do preach the Word of God to the best of my ability, and the fact is: if you’re teachable, then God will speak to you through the sermon. I mean, if God can speak through a donkey in the Old Testament, the parallel is obvious: he can speak through me.

If you don’t get anything out of a sermon, the problem most likely is not the sermon; the problem most likely is your attitude. Are you teachable?

Listen to what Solomon said:

Whoever gives heed to instruction prospers. (Proverbs 16:20)

Do you want to become a top-tier Christian? Become like a little child: recognize that you don’t know everything there is to know, and become enthusiastically teachable. There’s a third principle here to look at. Humility, Teachability, and…

DEPENDENCE

“Unless you change and become like little children…”

You know what I’ve noticed about children? They’re utterly dependent and they know it. You’ll never hear a five year old say, “I’m a self-made child…I picked myself up from my bootstraps and made myself what I am.” They don’t say that; they’re utterly dependent. They say, “I’m hungry. I need help. Will you do this for me? Will you get this for me?” etc.

Just as children are completely dependent on their parents, we need to be completely dependent on God.

Listen to what Paul said in the book of 2 Corinthians. He talks about the hardships he has faced, and then he says…

Indeed in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead…On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us…(2 Corinthians 1:9-10) 9

The Apostle Paul, had to learn dependence in order to become a great Christian. We have to learn dependence, too. God isn’t looking for a bunch of self-made disciples who can get through life without his help. He’s looking for followers who will depend on him for everything.

Alex Haley, author of Roots, had a picture in his office of a turtle sitting on a fence post. He said the picture was there to remind him of an important lesson: if you see a turtle on a fence post, you know he had some help getting there. Haley said, “Every time I’m tempted to think, ‘Aren’t I marvelous? Look at all I’ve accomplished!’ I look at that picture and remember how this turtle me — got up on that post.”

That’s how much we need to depend on God. Becoming great in God’s kingdom — becoming a holy person — is about as possible as a turtle climbing a fence. We can’t do it on our own; we have to depend on him.

Are you struggling with sin right now? Are you fighting it in your own power? Are you trying to accomplish goodness on your own? It’ll never work.

You have to get to the place where you depend on God. Are you struggling with your emotions right now — feeling things you don’t want to feel, wanting things you shouldn’t want? You’ll never win this battle on your own. You need God’s help.

Just like a child can’t go out and earn the money to pay the mortgage, you cannot manufacture holiness on your own. And just like a child depends on his parents for food and shelter, we must learn to depend on God for strength for daily living.

We must pray, “God, I cannot change the way I feel, and sometimes it seems I cannot control my actions, my temper, or my sinful desires. All I can do is depend on you to change me through your mercy and power.”

Do you want to be a good Christian…a top-tier Christian…the greatest in God’s kingdom? In order to become holy you must change, but you can’t do it on your own.

Stop working at it as if you were working for a job promotion, and do it the way Jesus said: become like a child.

Be humble. Put everyone else on the same level as you; act medium.

Be teachable. Acknowledge that you don’t know all there is to know, and enthusiastically embrace instruction.

And be dependent. It may go against the grain of American rugged individualism, but it’s the only way to grow.

Stop depending on yourself and start depending on God, just as a child depends on his parents for all that he needs. When you become like a child, you will become mighty in the eyes of God.

Humble yourself in the sight of the Lord, and he will lift you up. (James 4:10)

[Unless we tend our relationship with God, our spiritual houses
can become places of desolation.]

Nobleton Community Church
January 21, 2024
text:  Luke 13:31-35
Pastor Paul V. Lehmann

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 Thanks to our home-foreclosure crisis, we are getting all too acquainted with literal desolate houses. Foreclosure signs are a familiar sight in many communities across America. Some of these properties fall into disrepair.  Neighborhoods in cities and towns across America are decimated because of houses abandoned after their owners are either forced out by mortgage holders, or give up and walk away from them ahead of inevitable foreclosures. And we know how things often go from there: With no one tending them, the buildings start to crumble, eaves begin to sag, windows get smashed, mold becomes a problem, yards become overgrown and vandals or squatters or even drug dealers add to the deterioration. The houses begin to die and so do the neighborhoods in which they sit.

 In this passage, Jesus refers to a house that has been left “desolate.” The RSV has it “forsaken.”  It’s an opportunity for to examine how our “houses” become desolate, and how they might be restored once again.

 If there’s one biblical metaphor that translates easily to our culture today, it’s likely the one Jesus uses in Luke 13:35, where he laments over Jerusalem and says, “Look, your house is left to you desolate …” (NIV).

 What sort of houses did Jesus consider desolate? In both New Testament Greek and modern English, the word “house” can stand not only for a building but also for a family. The text begins with the Pharisees passing along a threat from Herod, whom Jesus would refer to as a fox. This passage shows us Jesus talking to Herod Antipas king of Galilee, who was out to stop him

. To the Jew the fox was a symbol of three things.

 First it was regarded as the slyest of animals.

 Second, it was regarded as the most destructive of animals.

 Third, it was the symbol of a worthless and insignificant man.

 So, it was a courageous remark by Jesus, and probably reflected a little bit of his humanity, to call the reigning king a fox.

One of the well-known preachers in England named Latimer, was once preaching in Westminster Abbey when Henry the king was in the congregation. In the pulpit he remarked: “Latimer! Latimer! Latimer! Be careful what you say. The king of England is here!” Then he went on to say; “Latimer! Latimer! Latimer! Be careful what you say. The King of Kings is here.”   Yes it is far more important what we say about Jesus The King of Kings than any earthly king.  And Jesus took his orders from God, and he would not shorten his work by one day to please or to escape any earthly king. 

Luke 13:31-35 strongly connects our journey to Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem (Luke 9:51–19:28).

The passage is a continuation of 13:22-30, which records Jesus’ traveling “through one town and village after another, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem” (v. 22).

Here, Jesus specifically discusses the likelihood that expectations will be defied with respect to those who will be welcomed in and those who will be left out come judgment day. Heavenly standards will confound the earthly status quo. In the midst of this lesson is where the Pharisees enter the scene to warn Jesus that Herod is seeking to kill him.

This warning is the source of speculation regarding the intent of the Pharisees. Because their own authority is thrown into question by much of what Jesus teaches, 13:22-30 included, the Pharisees are typically portrayed as being in tension with him. Thus, it is surprising that Luke depicts them — “some” (v.31), at least — as cautioning Jesus about Herod. Perhaps the Pharisees are merely taunting Jesus. But they may very well be concerned for his safety, suggesting that not all Pharisees are unbendingly at odds with Jesus (witness Nicodemus in the gospel of John and examples of hospitality extended to Jesus by Pharisees in Luke 7:6, 11:37 and 14:1).

Less open to speculation is Herod’s dire threat. Herod, of course, stands to be one of the biggest losers when the earthly status quo is disrupted. He has already met the prophetic challenge of John the Baptist with lethal force (9:7-9). Because of his own prophetic presence, Jesus has also made his way onto Herod’s enemies list. Having withstood temptation posed by the devil in the wilderness (4:1-13), Jesus now faces the temptation of avoiding the wrath of a despot.

Jesus responds by not succumbing to fear. He is defiant, dismissively referring to Herod as “that fox” (v. 32), one who is sly and not to be trusted. Jesus is doing holy work, “casting out demons and performing cures” (v. 32), and he instructs the Pharisees to tell Herod that this work will go on until it is accomplished. Moreover,

Jesus makes it clear that this work is integral to the overall task of making his way to Jerusalem, a task he “must” pursue (v. 33a). The word here connotes a necessity corresponding to carrying out orders, in this case a divine mission (see Luke 2:49; 9:22; 22:7).

The house of Herod was tangled. The family line did not resemble so much a tree as a tangled ball of yarn. This Herod, named Antipas, had other relatives called Herod as well, and their marriages, divorces and remarriages were not only often ill-considered, but were sometimes incestuous.

The Herods were greatly admired in the Roman Empire. Herod the Great, for instance, had saved the Olympics around the year 12 B.C. by funding them perfectly. He left behind many great architectural works, including substantial improvements to the Jewish temple — so impressive that it caused one of Jesus’ disciples to marvel: “Look, Teacher, what large stones and what large buildings!” Jesus, however, knew about the coming desolation and replied,

“Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down” (Mark 13:1-2).

Jesus was right, and eventually, that desolation would become all too tangible. In A.D. 66, the Jewish population rebelled against Rome. The empire could not allow that revolt to succeed, and so in A.D. 70, Roman legions under future emperor Titus retook the city and destroyed much of it, including the temple, which has not been rebuilt to this day.

Despite his major improvements to the temple and his popularity in the empire, Herod was hated by his own people because of his murderous ways, which were emulated by his descendants.

The failed relationships in the family of Herod may represent the sort of house Jesus lamented over. But he likely was thinking about the brokenness among the common people as well, and about the failure by many to love God with their whole hearts and love their neighbors as themselves.

It’s not much of a stretch to apply “the house desolate” to our lives. An unattended life — one littered with missed opportunities, broken relationships, repeated procrastinations, a lack of empathy, un-kept promises, false starts, yielded-to temptations, selfish priorities and the like — can quickly become a forsaken or desolate “house.”

It’s pretty easy to find desolate-house-type lives in the news. Think of any one of the celebrities or politicians or yes, even big-name religious figures, who destroyed their families, lost their positions, ruined their reputations and betrayed those who trusted them because of some act of infidelity or gross selfishness. But don’t limit your thinking to just them, because it’s often much smaller acts of inattention that we are guilty of in our families, but nevertheless, just as destructive.

For example, a song by Roger Miller, high on both the country and pop charts several years ago, told of a marriage breaking down, and began, “Two broken hearts — lonely, lookin’ like houses where nobody lives.”

The old popular TV cop show “The Closer”, which ended after seven seasons, contains another example. The main character, Deputy Chief Brenda Leigh Johnson (played by Kyra Sedgwick), was an effective police officer with an innate ability to discern who the bad guys were and wrangle admissions of guilt out of them. But she had one habit that drove her family and co-workers nuts: When she was hot on a case, she became so focused that she usually deflected their requests for her attention, even if they only wanted a brief moment, putting them off until “later.” As the series went along, it became obvious that she was always behind in tending the most important relationships in her life, and in an episode near the end of the series, it caught up with her.

In that episode, Brenda’s parents, whom she loved deeply but too often shortchanged with her time, are visiting in her home. Just after Brenda gets a fresh lead on her current case, her mother asks for a moment to tell her something important. Reluctant to look away from her case, Brenda promises to give her some time over breakfast the next morning. Her mother agrees, but looks disappointed. The next morning, intending to keep her date with her mother, Brenda goes to the guest bedroom to awaken her, only to find that Mama has died unexpectedly during the night. That episode ends with Brenda screaming for her husband who comes and rushes her from the room.

The next episode, set a week or so later and after the funeral, has Brenda, still grieving and badly shaken, back at work, where in a reflective moment, she tells a co-worker that she’s sorry for not listening to him better. Then she adds, “Funny, I feel like I pay more attention to what murderers have to say while ignoring the people I really care about.” In the concluding scene of that episode, her husband finds her sitting on the bed where her mother died. She says to him, “The last time I saw Mama, she asked me if I had a minute, and I didn’t have the time just then. Now, I’m the one who could really use a minute, and Mama has no time at all.” The episode ends with her weeping — inconsolably — in her husband’s arms.

Improper or deferred maintenance is always bad for relationships, and that includes our spiritual ones as well.

 An unattended spiritual house can yield a life where God is supposedly welcome, but where he refuses to abide because the place is a spiritual dump where he is ignored by the occupant — so ignored, that the occupant doesn’t even notice when the Lord is no longer there.

We can become so accustomed to starving our relationships, breaking our promises, failing to carry through, ignoring our spiritual health and so on that we don’t realize how bad things are until the whole thing comes crashing down.

(There was a certain irony in Jesus’ lament over Jerusalem in that there was no widespread awareness among its residents of how far many in the city had drifted from God.)

Jesus said to Jerusalem, “Look, your house is left to you desolate ….”  He wept over Jerusalem because of their rejection of the love he tried to show them.

He probably came to Jerusalem a lot more times than what is recorded in scripture. It is always heart wrenching when someone rejects our love. We could substitute the name Nobleton or Bushnell, or Brooksville, in the place of Jerusalem, because: Wherever we have people who have not responded to our witness of Christ, or our testimony of what Jesus has done for us, we too, will feel the rejection He felt. What might it mean for our lives to be left to ourselves? For one thing, it means that life is only what we can make of it on a temporal time scale, devoid of any hope that extends beyond our lifetime, devoid of any confidence that God will multiply our efforts in this life. For another, it means that we have no ultimate authority to which we answer. Yes, we still have societal standards, but no rock on which to stand when society is bending with ill winds. For yet another, we have no access to the sheltering wings that give comfort, no eternal healing balm for our wounds, no assurance that nothing can separate us from the love of God.

An atheist might hear that and say, “So be it. I’m on my own in this world and that’s just fine.” In fact, the unbeliever might even declare that such a state is not one of desolation but of contentment. It’s hard to say whether any of that is bravado or whether it’s a sincere conviction, but most people don’t want to be left on their own in this life, and if they were, they’d recognize that condition as one of desolation. We want to know that when terrible things happen to us and losses pile up, ultimately it’s going to be all right.

We keep our spiritual houses from becoming desolate by tending our relationship with the Lord. We can’t keep telling the Lord “later” or “someday” and expect that to keep the relationship strong.

In The Closer episode following the death of Brenda’s mother, her husband stops by the police station and asks Brenda if she has a minute. She’s begun work on a new case and almost reflexively, she responds, stalling him, and she begins to walk away. But then, with the memory of what she missed by doing that to her mother apparently hitting her afresh, she turns back and says, “Sorry. Yes, I do.” After they are alone in her office, she tells him, “Don’t ask me. If you need to talk to me, just say, ‘Listen,’ okay?”

 It’s good for us to be in that kind of relationship with God as well, where he can just say, “Listen,” and we give him our attention.

Rick Long, the pastor of Jones Memorial UMC, Lake City, Georgia says:

“God rarely shouts “LISTEN” to me, More often I just get a gentle nudge. Someone will come to mind, and I’ll wonder why. I’ve learned to pay attention to these moments; to make a contact, a call, a visit. One might miss the nudge, thinking it’s just a coincidence; a little nothing passing through our day, but it could be so much more. When we focus our attention upon the person who comes to mind, we are actually praying for them. When we make contact with them, the conduit for grace to move between us is made. A fresh wind of the Spirit moves among us.”

When it comes to our actual houses, it’s not always our fault when maintenance is deferred. Sometimes we just don’t have the budget for every repair the house could use, and we have to prioritize but: Our spiritual house has this odd stipulation that not all maintenance is up to the occupant alone. God is ready to help us keep the place up.

It’s only our fault if we don’t seek his help and then keep the lines of communication open.

The lyrics of the song “Separate Me From What Separates Us” by Steve Ivey are a great prayer for those who wish to keep their spiritual house in good repair:

Separate me from what separates us.

Fill me with your love.

Separate me from what separates us.

My affections are set on above.

My heart cries out to you, O Lord.

You are my rock and fortress.

Protector, director, deliver me now

To the unseen things above.

Elisabeth Elliot the widow of martyred missionary Jim Elliot, one of the 5 MAF pilots who lost their lives when the Anca Indians killed them says;

“If you believe in a God who controls the big things, you have to believe in a God who controls the little things. It is we, of course, to whom things look ‘little’ or ‘big.’ “

Nobleton Community Church
January 14, 2024
TEXT:   II Corinthians 12:1-10
Pastor Paul V. Lehmann RDS

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In the last part of chapter 11 of II Corinthians the Apostle Paul is boasting about “his credentials” so to speak. In verses 22-27 he tells us about the fact that he is a Hebrew, and a descendent of Abraham and a servant of Jesus Christ, just like some other people. He even admits that he is boasting like people of the world, like a fool.  But he goes on to say that he has worked much harder than some others. He tells us that he has been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. He goes on in verse 24 and following.

In verse 28 we read; “Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. He tells us he is weak but he doesn’t feel

That leads me to chapter 12 where he tells us about his visions and revelations from the Lord (in the 3^rd person), where he heard inexpressible things that no one is permitted to tell. Something else that he could boast about, but he refrains from doing it so no one will thin more of him than is warranted. Now because of these surpassingly great revelations, in order to keep him from becoming conceited, Paul was given a “thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment him. Three times he pleaded with the Lord to take it away from him. But the Lord said to him;

“MY GRACE IS SUFFICIENT FOR YOU, FOR MY POWER IS MADE PERFECT IN WEAKNESS. 

So in verse 10 Paul says …for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties For when I am week, then I am strong.

Some commentators have said that Paul’s thorn in the flesh refers to a physical illness. But this isn’t affirmed by anywhere else in scripture.  It is true that we don’t know exactly, but based on the context we have an idea and even though a physical problem is possible, I don’t believe it was. Some have imagined it might have been Malaria, or epilepsy, or an eye disease, or club feet or a hunched back. But there is nothing to back any of this up, except maybe the fact that he says in Galatians 4:15 that he knew they would give up their eyes for him if they could. And then in 6:11 he remarks about the LARGE letters he is making in writing to them. Nevertheless it doesn’t seem feasible that it is a physical ailment, even considering this passage and especially what he has written in II Corinthians.

Paul’s influence was growing He was preaching all over to kings and governors and world leaders. He was planting churches, writing New Testament scriptures and everywhere he went he was pushing back the gates of hell. He endured much persecution by religious leaders. When he went into  a city, the first thing he did was go into a synagogue, but when he preached the Gospel, he was reported to the authorities and they arrested him, and frequently beat him an put him in prison. Remember what we read from chapter 11. If the opposition wasn’t from the Jewish leaders it was from pagan (Gentiles). In Acts 16:16-24 a slave girl fortune-teller made a lot of money for her masters by predicting the future. Paul delivered her from the spirit of divination. Her owners seized Paul and had him arrested, beaten and put in prison, because he had taken away their means of income.

The biggest “thorn” in Paul’s life was the fact that he had to deal with these different groups of people who covertly planned the problems and hassles he faced in his ministry.

.The messenger from Satan, perhaps even a demonic angel, had been sent to incite these people against Paul.

If you survey the  types of ordeals Paul endured you will see that many of them were orchestrated by these people who wanted to get rid of him. They were all teaming with hatred toward him. They wanted to see his head on a stake

One of the greatest kinds of attacks Paul experienced was not just words, but physical beatings which explains his use of the word translated buffet or like the NIV “torment me.”

. All of these kind of things presented opposition to the spreading of the gospel. They were brought about by PEOPLE.

Bishop K.C. Pillai from India has written a little book entitled: “Light Through an Eastern window.”  When used as a figure of speech, a thorn in the flesh always refers to irritating or bothersome people. In fact it so used in the Old Testament.  Numbers 33:55-56 refers to people. “ …if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land, those you allow to remain will become barbs in your eyes and thorns in you sides. They will give you trouble in the land where you will live.  And then in Joshua 23:13…”they…will become snares and traps for you, whips on your backs and thorns in your eyes….” And then again in Judges 2:3  “thorns in your sides” is used.

When we consider all of what Paul went through in his ministry, it seems incongruent to think he was asking the Lord “to take away a physical ailment. But to ask the Lord to “give him a break” so to speak from all the people who were led by Satanic forces to prevent the spreading of the Gospel,  seems quite plausible.

So in light of what I have shared, I don’t believe Paul’s thorn in the flesh was sickness or any physical ailment. It is possible that he did ask for some of his physical problems to be taken away, but I don’t think we should ever use this passage as a proof text when we don’t get healed. Some do this. They say; “See Paul asked the Lord to heal him, and he didn’t do it. He said, “my grace is sufficient for you.”  I also don’t believe in our vernacular that the Lord was saying to him:  “suck it up and go on.”  Paul had already done that. He practically ignored any physical problems he had. What he was asking for was to relieve some of the pressure he was feeling every time he shared the gospel. The response of the Lord to him, is the same response he is telling us.

 He is saying, no matter how much opposition you have from people, no matter how hard it seems to witness for me, MY GRACE IS SUFFICEINT.

 Why?—because: You have all the POWER AND AUTHORITY THROUGH ME—YOU HAVE THE HOLY SPIRIT. GREATER IS HE THAT IS IN YOU THAN ALL THE FORCES OF DARKNESS THAT THE ENEMY THROWS IN YOUR WAY.

You see, the devil used people again and again, trying to keep Paul so distracted solving “people problems” that he wouldn’t be able to make any more significant personal or Gospel advancements.

What about us? What do you intend to do about the “thorns” that Satan is using to steal your joy and sidetrack you from what God has called you to do.? How do you intend to react to this ongoing disturbance? Paul never allowed people to keep him from fulfilling his divine call, and you shouldn’t either I urge you to follow his example. Don’t allow people to stop you, or to annoy you, or hold you back from doing what God has called you to do.

Satan is afraid of you and your gifts when you use them to serve the Lord. He is afraid of your potential, or else he wouldn’t bother to Insite people to stir up trouble for you.

REMEMBER –THE LORD’S GRACE IS SUFFICIENT FOR YOU.

Nobleton Community Church
January 7, 2024
text:  I Corinthians 16: 1-9
Reverend Paul V Lehmann

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letcher Tarkington spoke for most of us when she said: “I wish that there was some wonderful place called “The Land of Beginning Again,” where all our mistakes and all of our heartaches and all of our poor, selfish greed could be dropped like a shabby coat at the door, and never put it on again.”

Our desire as children of God should be to do better in the future than we have in the past. Jesus The new year presents us with the opportunity of finding a “Land of Beginning Again.” We will be using a new calendar, and we will be facing new challenges and new responsibilities, but we are deceiving ourselves if we believe that the new year will be completely different from the old year, unless God intervenes. For we will be confronted with many of the struggles, problems, and heartaches we knew during the past year. We soon fail to keep our New Year’s resolutions.

When we talk about “doors of opportunity,” we must realize that the opening of doors is all God’s responsibility. We just need to be ready to walk through them when he does it. In Acts 19:1 we read that Apollos who had been working with Paul, had gone to Corinth. A little further from where Carol read this morning, –in verse 12 we see that Paul was urging Apollos, to go to Corinth, but he was unwillingly —but Paul tells them he will go when he has the opportunity. Some have felt that Apollos was strong willed and that he wasn’t going to go to Corinth, just because Paul told him to go. I believe though, that there might be another reason. Apollos was willing to obey God whenever, and wherever he would tell him to go. For some reason it wasn’t in God’s timing for him to go then, but when the door was open —he went.

The important thing to realize is; God’s timing is not ours—and when he finally opens the door we must be ready to walk through it by being prepared, and then obey.

Jeannene and I have seen this to be true many times in our lives, but there were two significant times when God’s timing and ours didn’t seem to coincide. Yet in the long run, his timing was perfect of course. Our first ministry in Boma, Dem. Rep of the Congo, I was principle of a high school, and taught Phys. Ed., built an outdoor basketball court and started a basketball team. We had a Bible Study in our home for these players. At the end of our first four year term, 34 young people had given their lives to Christ. But we were feeling led to go to the Capitol City for our next term and help with the newly started church planting efforts. However God had other plans, and when we came back after a year of speaking in churches in the States, we were assigned once again to Boma. I couldn’t understand how the Lord and I “got our wires crossed” so much. Nevertheless it was all in the Lord’s timing. I led Theological Education by Extension Classes, and   was involved with a tent meeting outreach, which resulted with having discipleship classes for 76 converts that lived in our section of the city, and through this a church was planted. Everything that I was involved with, was what I would be doing in Kinshasa. After one year we were able to transfer to the capitol.

While we may have a deep inward desire to “begin again” realistically we should recognize that our present position is really our door of opportunity for significant achievement and worthwhile service. Paul recognized in verse 9 of our text that; “a great door for effective service” was open to him in Ephesus. Instead of running away from difficulty, he said, “but I will stay on at Ephesus until Pentecost”…then he adds, “and there are many adversaries.”

In spite of difficulties, disappointments, and outright opposition, the apostle Paul determined that he would seize this opportunity for significant service and do whatever was necessary to be done at the moment. The Greek word for open here, means—wide open—not just a little, or a crack, but the door was wide open.

This pagan city of Ephesus resisted his preaching in the past—but now, they were receptive to the gospel, and the three years that Paul stayed and preached there were very fruitful, and the church he planted became one of the greatest churches in church history. In the book of Revelation chapter 2 where Ephesus is the first church that Jesus is talking to John about, we read that they have worked hard, and persevered, and they don’t tolerate wicked people. They endured hardships for the name of Jesus, and they didn’t grow weary. But then he says in verses 4 and 5: “Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your ‘lampstand’ from its place” That is—their position of prominence. This isn’t a position that is recognized by other people and other churches but rather a position that God gave them. That’s what makes this so necessary that they repent and restore their first love for the Lord. Probably also for each other, because when our love for the Lord fails, we begin to say things against each other. In the KJV, the old English word is “backbite.” That’s what dogs do when they fight. What a terrible state to be in.

Now the danger for us today is to be commended like the church at Ephesus, and then begin to fall and lose the love that we once had for the Lord. This leads to not responding to the opportunities that he gives us. Sometimes that means that we sort of, “rest on our laurels” from the past, or we may think about what opportunities “might” open up in the future. But we need to recognize that the past has gone for good, and the future dreams will not become a reality unless we take advantage of the opportunities that God gives us TODAY.

Today is our day of opportunity for effective service. In John 9:4 Jesus explains; “As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming when no one can work.” Then in II Corinthians 6;2 we read; “…In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.” I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, in this present time. Not sometime in the future. It is absolutely necessary to recognize the importance of the present, in contrast to the past or the future.”

It is foolish to rely on what we might have done in the past, or to weep over lost opportunities. It is also just as foolish to just wait for the future to happen. The only thing we can be certain of is the present. Does this mean that we don’t think about or plan for the future? No—not at all—we should plan and set goals and consider what we should do TODAY, in order to accomplish what God has laid on our heart to do.

In Proverbs 10:9 we are told; “in their hearts, humans plan their course but the Lord establishes their steps.” Back in verse 3 we read; that we should submit or commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans. Some translations say, “He will bless them.”

The last part of verse 9 of our text shows us though that Paul was confronted with many adversaries. There are many, who oppose him,

He was opposed by the Jewish leaders who violently disagree with his ideas about the kingdom of God. Paul believed that the Kingdom of God was wide enough and large enough to include the Gentiles. He believed that the love of God was all-inclusive and that God was just as concerned about redeeming the Gentiles as he was the sons of Abraham. In preaching salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, he was confronted with violent opposition that led to his imprisonment and eventually to his death. In spite of his external opposition from religious leaders, Paul continued his faithful service.

Paul experienced hostile opposition from the pagans whose financial security was threatened by the conversion of those who contributed to their business in Ephesus. Those who profited because of the temple of Diana were agitated to the extent that they rioted (Acts 19:23-29).

Jesus was confronted with many adversaries. On one occasion even Christ’s family sought to dissuade him from the direction in which his life was pointing. At the beginning of his ministry, he was violently opposed by the Devil, who sought to tempt him to deny his redemptive purpose. There were times during Jesus’ ministry when even the disciples opposed him. When Jesus predicted his death n Matthew 16:21-22, we see that; “Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, Never, Lord! This shall never happen to you!” He just didn’t understand the redemptive purpose, that Jesus was born to die for mankind. Of course it was all in God’s timing.

Once when he returned to his hometown of Nazareth, he attended the synagogue and he was asked to read the Scriptures. He read from Isaiah 61:1-2 and verses 18-21. The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”  Then he ended by saying: “today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing. The people were so enraged by his message that they tried to throw him over a cliff (Luke 4:28-29). We read though that; “He walked right through the crowd and went on his way.” Almost from the beginning of his ministry he experienced hostility and opposition on the part of the religious establishment who saw him as a threat to the laws and traditions as they interpreted them. They also added things to the law and they demanded that the people follow these, but they themselves didn’t. (Sounds like our politicians, doesn’t it?)  Anyway this conflict eventually led to his death.

We may worry about external opposition, but perhaps our greatest danger will be the internal hindrances that keep us from doing God’s will for our lives. This is true of our individual spiritual lives, but also collectively for our church, this body of Christ. These inward adversaries can be conquered only as we enter the doorways of opportunity for WORSHIP, STUDY, AND PRAYER in which we let God work within us so that his will might be accomplished through us.

Each of us has a built-in tendency because of sin, to avoid obligations, burdens, or difficulties. It is natural unfortunately, to be selfish and self-centered. Unless we are alert and determined to do otherwise and give ourselves over to the filling and the control of the Holy Spirit, we will continue to live carnal lives, and we will find ourselves drifting through this coming year, adding days to our lives instead of filling those days with significance and meaning.  

We must seize our opportunities for service. In the Old Testament in the account of creation, Eve didn’t seize the opportunity to obey and serve the Creator God, and Adam didn’t support her against the enemy Satan, who continues to deceive us, like he did them. Cain their son then, killed his brother Abel, because he didn’t seize the opportunity to obey and worship the Lord with all of his heart. When we hate our brothers and sisters in Christ, or when we hate anyone, it is the same as if we have killed them, or at the very least, wanted to kill them. In Matt. 5: 21-22 we read that; “we are told -do not murder because that person is subject to judgement, but Jesus said that the person who is angry with a brother or sister is also subject to judgement. In I John 2:9 we read; “You claim to live in the light, but you are living in darkness. “Walk by faith and not live in darkness.”  I John 3:15 tells us; “Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life residing in him. “

The door of faith is open.  Paul rejoiced that God opened the door of faith to the Gentiles (Acts 14:27). He was delighted that Gentiles could trust God and walk by faith and enjoy his favor.

To each of us is given the privilege of walking by faith (Prove. 3:5-6) to walk by faith is to enjoy the presence of God as Enoch did and Abraham and all the others listed in that great faith chapter 11 of Hebrews.

When we trust in Christ alone the door to divine sonship is open to all who will receive Jesus Christ as their Savior from sin. (John 1:12) “To as many as received Him, and believed in His name, He gave the (power) or the  right to be called the sons of God. Most of you here this morning have already seized the opportunity to enter this door (the door of salvation). We can rejoice that the door is still open for others to enter. Some have declined to enter this doo and consequently remain in the darkness of spiritual destitution outside of the family of God. Don’t be that person. If you have not received Jesus Christ by inviting Him into your life, you can do so this morning.

The door to Christian witnessing is open.  Paul speaks of a door being open to preach the gospel in the city of Troas. The door will be open for us to announce the good news of God’s love in our community during the coming year. We, like the apostle Paul, should be praying that God would open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ. (Col. 4:3) and he adds “for which I am in chains.” In verses 4-5 he says; “Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity.”

Jesus said, “I am the door; if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture” (John 10:9). Jesus is the door to forgiveness, He is the door into new life, eternal like, the very life of God. He is the door to new spiritual power and energy. He is the door to hope for the future as we seek to live lives of significant achievement and service. He is the door to the eternal home of God at the end of our life.

On this first Sunday of the New Year, let each of us determine that we will be alert to seize every opportunity for worship and service to our God and to those about us. By so doing we will discover that we have already found the “land of beginning again.”

The enemy will try his best to keep you from stepping through the gigantic doors of opportunity God desires to open for you. Satan is afraid of what will happen when “his” territory is invaded by someone fully equipped with a full arsenal of spiritual weapons! So know this; God will open doors for you—but He needs you to make a determined decision that you will walk through them, no matter the opposition, with the help of His Holy Spirit. By opening the door, God has already done His part, which would have been impossible without his assistance. Now He beckons you to come dressed in the whole armor of God and in the power of His Word—and then proceed through that effectual door into new territory this year. It may look like enemies are everywhere, but it is simply a fact that the devil and his forces flee and collapse when they are subjected to a show of strong faith!.

God doesn’t open a door for you to walk through so you can fail

He is with you every step of the way.

Your situation may look frightful, but think about this: If God has supernaturally opened a new door for you—-a door that’s never before been opened—-He is not beckoning you to walk through it so you can fail. He is with you every step of the way, and He will empower you to defeat every foe and bring Him glory in that new territory that is yours to possess in Jesus’ name!

At the last Passover Supper, Jesus knew very well how the disciples were going to feel after he was betrayed. He knew they would feel like all was lost, and that they were alone. The power that they were going to receive because of what he would accomplish on the cross, would be greater than anything they had ever experienced before.  That’s why He told them in I Cor. 11:23-25 that every time they eat the bread and drink from the cup— to do it remembrance of Him.