RIP TIDE
Swim at Your Own Risk
As you saw in the promo video,
we’re starting a new series this month
called RIP TIDE!
I’m real excited about this series
because it has something for every one.
I don’t care if this is the first time
you’ve ever been to church,
or if you have been going to church all your life.
There’s at least one principle in these messages
that you can use for your life.
So make sure you don’t miss
any of the messages in this series.
I really want you to grab a hold of this wave
and ride it out!
Let me give you an overview of some of the upcoming messages in this series.
RIP TIDE
Week 1 Swim at Your Own Risk
Week 2 Life Guard On Duty
Week 3 Danger Strong Current
Week 4 HELP!
Week 5 No Swimming
Let’s get started tonight by looking at RIP TIDE
1. Swim at Your Own Risk
How many of you like the beach?
I know our teens do.
In fact they let me drive them to the beach
this past summer.
Now I must admit that even though
I’m a Florida Cracker,
I don’t necessarily care that much for the beach.
I don’t like it when the sand gets in my shoes,
the salt water makes me feel sticky,
and the sun is way too hot.
I’m just not the beach bum type.
How many of you here are good swimmers?
That’s good. I don’t swim well either.
In fact, I never even learned how to swim
until I was a teenager, and met Kelli.
She taught me how to swim,
and I taught her how to drive!
Now that’s a productive relationship!
I can swim well enough to save myself if I have to,
but I’m not going to go swim in a marathon
or anything like that.
Those of you who are like me,
and don’t swim well either,
have you ever gotten caught in a riptide
in the ocean?
Did it scare you?
I remember once when I got caught in one,
and it liked to scared me to death.
I just knew that was the end for me.
But even though
I might not be the best of swimmers,
I am fairly strong.
It’s kind of a natural thing in my family.
The fact that most of us work outside helps too.
But even with my strength, I had a hard time
fighting against the current of the Rip Tide.
Now, those of you
who consider yourselves to be good swimmers,
have you even gotten caught in a riptide?
Did it scare you?
My wife told me
that she thought she was going to drown one time
when she got caught up in one
when she was a child.
They are scary.
Let’s take a look at what a Rip Tide really is.
Sometimes, people call them “undertows”.
So let’s look at both of these words
so we can have a full understanding.
Riptides and Undertows are related.
Breaking waves approach the beach
carrying water toward the beach.
The water can’t just pile up there
it has to escape back out to sea somehow.
If there’s a place along the beach
where the waves aren’t as strong,
the water near the shore
escapes through that weak spot,
flowing back out to sea.
This is a Rip Tide.
If there is no spot with weaker surf,
the water flows down and under the waves
and back out to sea, forming an undertow.
On the other hand, let’s look at the word undertow:
un•der•tow - noun
An Undertow is:
A strong sea-ward bottom current
returning the water of broken waves
back out to sea.
Did you get that?
When the waves crash onto the beach,
that water has to go somewhere.
It doesn’t stay on the beach.
So there’s a strong current under the water
that returns the water back out to sea.
When there is no channel for the water to travel in,
it takes a wide part of the water out to sea.
If a person gets caught in the undertow
they can be pulled under the surface of the water,
and carried back out to sea
with the rest of the water.
That’s how strong this current is.
Even though you can’t really see the current,
you can see and feel the effects of the current
in a tremendous way once you are in it.
Now Rip Currents (or “rip tides”)
are sometimes mistakenly called an undertow.
However, a rip current
will not pull you under the surface of the water.
It has the same strong pull as an undertow,
but it’s more subtle.
This is even more dangerous,
because you don’t realize what’s happening
until it’s too late.
This is what the dictionary says about Rip Currents:
Rip Current (riptide) - noun
a strong usually narrow surface current
flowing outward from a shore
that results from the return flow of waves
and wind-driven water
I’ve never experienced an undertow
which was strong enough
to actually suck someone under the water.
Most deaths attributed to "undertow"
happen when people playing
in the area where the waves run up onto the beach get their feet knocked out from under them
when the water flows back down to the sea.
They get dragged a short distance into the breakers, and aren’t strong enough or knowledgeable enough
to get back to shore.
Now here’s some helpful information:
To escape a riptide,
swim along the shore to the left or right,
to escape the seaward-flowing jet of water.
Riptides can flow much faster than you can swim:
if you try to swim directly back to shore
against the current,
you’ll soon become tired and risk drowning.
Illustration: Get out of the flow of the current.
Swim perpendicular, not parallel with it.
You’re probably sitting there thinking
pastor, I’m not here for lifeguard lessons
I’m here for Bible lessons.
Well here you go!
Rip Tides and Undertows are a perfect picture of sin and it’s affects on us.
If we can grab a hold of this concept
of how to escape,
we will have more success
in escaping the pull of sin in our lives.
Who’s in Danger of Being Caught Up in a Rip Tide?
James 1:14 (NIV)
“but each one is tempted
when, by his own evil desire,
he is dragged away and enticed.
Then, after desire has conceived,
it gives birth to sin;
and sin, when it is full-grown,
gives birth to death.
Don’t be deceived…”
Did you see it?
Let’s look at it again.
Who’s in danger of being caught up in a Rip Tide?
Everyone
The Bible tells us that “Each one”
or all of us are in danger
of being caught up and dragged away
in the Rip Tide of sin.
And it all starts with the temptation.
If you can catch it right away,
realize the danger you are near
before you get caught in the current of the pull,
then you can get away from it and save yourself.
But if realize what it is, and you fail to escape,
because you didn’t immediately swim
in a perpendicular direction to the pull,
then you have chosen to put yourself in harm’s way, and you have surrendered yourself
to the current of the Rip Tide.
James tells us that the current of the Rip Tide
starts with the Temptation.
Temptation then plays on our Desires.
Sin comes when we take a perfectly natural desire
or longing or ambition
and try to desperately to fulfill it without God.
Not only is it sin,
it’s a perverse distortion of the image
of the Creator in us.
All good things, and all our security,
are only found completely in Him.
If we try to fulfill our desires, without God,
then 100% of the time it will lead us into Sin.
And eventually, if you have failed to fight
to stay out of the pull of the Rip Tide,
it will end in Death.
Here’s The Current of a Spiritual Riptide:
~ Temptation ~
~Desire ~
~Sin ~
~Death ~
Where are you in the water right now?
Are you caught in the current of a riptide tonight?
Are you being carried out to sea by sin?
Is your strength starting to fail?
Is it hard to hold on?
Well, I’m here to tell you that you
that it’s not too late.
You don’t have to give in to the pull of sin.
God is our strength.
He says that in our weakness,
His strength is made perfect.
He said we can do ALL things
through Christ Who strengthens us.
God says that with every temptation,
He has provided an escape for us
that we can hold on to
until we get back to solid ground.
He ends this verse in James by telling us,
“Do not be deceived”.
The temptation to sin comes from Satan.
God is warning us, not to be deceived.
Satan is cunning.
Satan is crafty.
Satan knows our weaknesses.
So God warns us, Do not be deceived.
You see, God loves us and cares for us
and is giving us a warning for our own good.
Just like all the moms at the beach
who yell at their children
to come back closer to shore,
telling them they are out too far,
that they’re in danger.
God is giving us very clear instruction
and how to live a safe and happy life
while we are here on this earth.
Stay away from sin. Don’t be deceived.
Don’t “go with the flow”.
Are you listening to Him?
