Subject: Spiritual Health
Scripture: Hebrews 10.19-25
Sermon: “From Power Plan to Paper Weights”
Scope: This sermon should compel Christians to live and maintain a healthy spiritual life.
Summary: We must realize that spiritual health is a way of life not a quick fix.
Segue: Let’s look at some steps we must take in order to maintain spiritual health individually and collectively.
Introduction: We live in an era of health fanatics. We eat low sodium, low fat foods. We look for diet plans and diet pills. We buy workout videos and the latest peace of exercise equipment on the market, only to see our video’s become paper weights and our equipment become portable clothes hangers. Then we become frustrated because we don’t see results. What we’ve failed to realize is that the folks used to advertise this stuff have made fitness away of life. Yet, those who market and package their programs and gadgets gear them to appeal to a fast paced consumer looking for a quick fix.
Isn’t the church a lot like that. Our society is full of unhealthy churches and spiritually weak Christians. We sit back and wonder why we have no growth spiritually or physically in our churches. We have become spiritually anemic and weak. We have forgotten that spiritual fitness must be a way of life. We sit back and wait for the quick fix. We look for the latest program to come down the Christian press. What we must realize is in order to maintain a healthy spiritual life and a healthy church we must make spiritual exercise a way of life.
So, today I want us to look at some steps we must take in order to maintain spiritual health individually and corporately.
First, we must draw near to God (see Hebrews 10.22). This is the key step in our walk towards spiritual health. The closer we get to God the better we will be able to fulfill the rest of the steps outlined in this text. Isn’t that what we long for any way? We won’t be satisfied until we see him face to face. I love the hymn that says, “what a day that will be when my Jesus I shall see, when he takes me by the hand and leads me through the promise land. What a day, glorious day that will be.” If we won’t to be healthy spiritually we must draw near to God. What a scary thought, because the closer we get to God the more of our true spirit is revealed. As we approach the presence of the Almighty we must say with the prophet Jeremiah, “woe is me, for I am a man of unclean lips and I live among a people of unclean lips.” When we get to that point in our lives we can expect the Angel of the Lord to purge our lips with a coal from the alter of God, just as He did for Jeremiah.
Just as Moses had to remove his shoes as he approached the burning bush, if we want to draw near to God, we must humble ourselves when we enter His presence. That’s what the writer of Hebrews said in verse 22 as he compels us to draw near to God with a sincere and true heart in full assurance of faith. The only way that we can hope to do that is by having our hearts sprinkled clean from evil and our bodies washed with pure water.
If we want to begin to have a healthy spiritual life let us first draw near to God. One of the first steps in drawing near to God is to dig into his word. A second way to move closer to God is by spending time in prayer. So, let us begin the process of a healthy Christian life by drawing near to God.
Second, if we want to be healthy Christians and develop healthy churches we must hold fast to the confession of our hope (see Hebrews 10.23). I remember when I was 16 years old how I made my first profession of faith. Our church was in revival with Bro. Bobby McGilliard leading the service. Through his message God began to reveal to me that I was lost and headed for a place called Hell. I went forward and one of the councilors took me to a room in the back and shared with me how I could have eternal life through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. I accepted Jesus as my Savior and was baptized. However, something happened. I began to doubt that salvation experience. I remember riding down the road talking with God and saying, Lord if I’m really a Christian let me know before I get to the next telephone pole. I would stay awake at night worrying over my eternal destiny. I questioned the words I said when I prayed to receive Christ as my Savior. This went on for about two years. But, finally on August 15, 1985 while sitting in the middle of a church service I looked up towards Heaven and said, “Lord I can’t do this any more.” I said, “God if I’m going to get to Heaven it is going to be because of what Jesus Christ did for me and not because of what I can do for myself.” It was that night that I rested completely in Jesus Christ as both my Lord and my Savior. From that day forward I have not had to battle with doubt any more. From that day forward I have held fast to the confession of my faith.
What made the change? God finally helped me realize that He who promised is faithful. He helped me understand that I was secure in His hands. He helped me understand that salvation is in Christ alone and that salvation is sustained by Christ alone. If we want to be healthy spiritually we must hold fast our confession of our hope without wavering. We can do this because He who has promised is faithful. To be healthy Christians we must not five up hope. We must not turn to the left or the fight. We must press toward the mark of the high calling that has been set before us.
The first two steps have dealt more with the individual person and really they were preparatory for us to help us reach the next level. The next level helps us learn how to develop a healthy family of faith.
After we have began to draw near to God and have began to hold fast the confession of our faith, we must then consider one another provoking each other to love and good deeds.
I read this story in a Max Lucado book. He called it “Groceries and Grace.” Apparently a middle aged man had gone to the Grocery Store to pickup some bread and cheese. After he found the items he got in line at the check out and he noticed that a lady with a full buggy pulled in behind him. When he made it to the clerk she directed his attention to a large fish bowl stuffed with slips of paper. She said, “Sir if you pull out the right slip you will not have to pay for your groceries today.” He ask, “how many right slips are in the bowl.” To which she replied, “only one.” He thought I have nothing to loose so he reach in and pulled out a piece of paper. You guessed it. He pulled out the winning slip of paper. The cashier said, “congratulations Sir, your groceries are free today.” Well, he looked at the paper and then he looked at his bread and cheese and thought what a waste. Then he turned to the lady behind him a winked as he said, “look honey we won, our groceries are free today.” Well I know this is kind of shady and he shouldn’t have lied, but if you can get past that small point, you have to admit that was a great example of what it means to stimulate others to love and good deeds.
In the King James Version this passage says we are to “provoke” one another to love and good deeds. Usually the word provoke carries a negative connotation. We say he provoked me to anger, or she provoked me so I gave her one on the chin. It is easy to provoke some one to anger. We do it all of the time over the silliest things. However, it takes effort to provoke some one to love and good deeds. In order to provoke someone to love and good deeds we must have an attitude that makes them want to love us. We must have an attitude that makes them want to do good deeds. Why is this so important to a healthy church? It is important to the health of a church because love is the glue that unifies the body of Christ. If the body is not unified then the church is unhealthy. If the body is not unified then the world is not touched. If we want to have a healthy effective church and healthy effective Christians we must have lives that provoke each other to love and good deeds. We do this by doing unto others as we would have them do unto us. If we can begin to live in the light of these commandments we will begin to live in a way that will provoke others to love and good deeds.
If we want to be healthy spiritually and have healthy churches we must also not forsake the assembling of our selves together (see Hebrews 10.25). I understand that there will be times that we can’t be at church but that’s not what this verse is talking about. The verse is referring to those who willfully put other things before the service to God. We need each other. We need each other in order to function as a healthy church. The church is made up of the body of Christ and every Christian is a part of that body. So, each one of us has a function to perform so that the body can function properly. Therefore, if you are a foot in the body of Christ and you are not where you are supposed to be when the body has gathered you cripple the body. It is imperative that we fulfill our function as a member of the body of Christ. If we want to be healthy Christians and have healthy churches we must be faithful to assemble ourselves together.
We must draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and or bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope with out wavering because He who has promised is faithful. Let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together s is the habit of some, but encouraging one another and all the more as you see the day of judgment drawing near.
