Christian Security

What kind of security do you have in your home? Do you have any at all? It might just be something as simple as a dead-bolt lock. Or, maybe you have some of those motion-sensored lights that will turn on automatically if someone walks by it. Or, maybe you have a guard dog. Sometimes those dogs might not be so reliable if someone ever actually got into your house, but they sure sound mean from the outside. Dana and I have a cat that will come and purr, and rub up against your leg. I don’t think that’s going to scare too many people away, though. Perhaps you actually have a full-fledged security system. One that requires a code to be punched in every time you come into the house. One that sounds an alarm if anyone tries to break into your home.

Well, whatever the type of security you have, it’s most likely enough security. Because, whatever kind of security we have, it’s enough to make us comfortable at night when we’re home alone. Or, when we’re away on vacation. Because if it wasn’t enough to make us comfortable, we probably would be seeking additional security.

This morning, I want us to consider whether or not we have security in our Christian lives. Do you have enough security in your walk with Christ? Do you have enough security in your faith, or your eternal destination? This will be our final lesson in the year-long series on “Eternal Vision.” We’ve talked about preparing for eternity. We’ve discussed the judgment day. We’ve looked into the glories of heaven, and the horrors of hell. And, so, today I want us to study our security in knowing where we are bound for eternity.

Can we know? Is it possible for us to have that kind of security. In the verses that were just read to us from Hebrews 4, there’s another word that describes what we’re talking about today. The Hebrews writer says that we can approach the throne of grace how? - with confidence. There are several things that we can have confidence in as Christians. But, this morning, I want us to look at three, specifically.

I. Confidence in Our Care

A. The first of these is found in Matthew 6:25-34. We can have confidence in our care. The eagle is one of the largest and most powerful birds in the world. Some eagles weigh as much as 12 or 13 pounds and have a wingspan of up to seven feet.

The nests of eagles are called eyries. They are built mainly of sticks and are often lined with fresh green leaves while they are being used. Once a year, the female lays one or two eggs, and they are carefully tended, sometimes even by the male eagle, until they hatch, in about 40 days. Both parents then guard the nest and take food to the young.

At about 11 or 12 weeks, a very curious thing happens. If the eaglets have not ventured forth on their own, the parent eagle "stirs" or rocks the nest, tipping the eaglets out! The young eaglets flap about in panic, still beginners at this flying business. The parent eagle hovers watchfully, waiting for the critical moment. Then, with wings spread wide, the eagle swoops down underneath those babies and delivers them back to the security of the eyrie.

Do you ever feel as though you’ve been tossed from the nest, and you don’t know how to fly? At some time or another in this life, I believe we all have experiences like this. We struggle to know how to handle the situations we’re in. We worry about what the end result is going to be. And, since we can’t see the future, we aren’t confident in how things are going to turn out.

But, that’s the beauty of the message Jesus gives us here. We don’t have to have confidence in knowing the end result. We don’t have to have confidence in our own abilities to get us through it all. Because we can have confidence in the One who cares for us. We can have confidence that even when we are tossed around by this life, and when we feel as though we’re free-falling, God is going to be there to catch us.

Friday night, at the Men’s Retreat, after everything was finished, several of us stayed in our conference room, and we sang a bunch of songs. I think it lasted 2 hours or more. And, it was great. But, one of the songs we sang reminded me of this morning’s sermon. So, I wanted us to turn to #319. [SING/READ VERSES 1 & 3]

We can have that kind of confidence! We can have the kind of confidence that says, “I don’t know about tomorrow, but I know it’s God that is going to care for me then.” And, that should provide us with a great deal of security in this life.