Dedication of the Temple.
Part 2 sermon 1
What God will do for us!
London businessman Lindsay Clegg told the story of a warehouse property he was selling. The building had been empty for months and needed repairs. Vandals had damaged the doors, smashed the windows, and strewn trash all over the place. As he showed a prospective buyer the property, he took pains to say that he would replace the broken windows, bring in a crew to correct any structural damage, and clean out the garbage. The buyer said, “Forget about the repairs. When I buy this place, I’m going to build something completely different. I don’t want the building; I want the site.”
That’s God’s message to us! Compared with the renovation God has in mind, our efforts to improve our own lives are as trivial as sweeping a warehouse slated for the wrecking ball. When we become God’s the old life is over. He makes all things new. All He wants is the site and the permission to build. There are still some trying to “reform,” but God offers “redemption.” All we have to do is give Him the “property” and he will do the necessary “building.”
For the past 3 weeks we have talked about what God wants from us. We talked about dedicating our lives and being a living sacrifice wile being humble and praying as well as seeking God’s face. As in (read)
2 Chronicles 7:14-16
14if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
15Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place.
16I have chosen and consecrated this temple so that my Name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.
But what I want to talk about today is what God said He would do for us, If we do our part, BIG WORD FOR ONLY 2 LETTERS.
HE said He would hear our prayers. Do you understand what that means. We do what we are supposed to do and He hears us when we call. But there is a flip side to that if we don’t do what He wants there is no guarantee He will hear us when we call, He may not listen to us.
In Psalms you can read over and over how God hears and delivers (answers prayers). Here is a good example.
Psalm 103:1-5
1 Praise the LORD, O my soul all my inmost being, praise his holy name. 2 Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits 3 who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, 4 who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, 5 who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
God also says in other places if we do what He wants, He will reword us as in. (read)
Leviticus 26:3-5
3“‘If you follow my decrees and are careful to obey my commands, 4I will send you rain in its season, and the ground will yield its crops and the trees of the field their fruit. 5Your threshing will continue until grape harvest and the grape harvest will continue until planting, and you will eat all the food you want and live in safety in your land.
Here is another example. (read)
Deuteronomy 28:1-6
1If you fully obey the LORD your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. 2All these blessings will come upon you and accompany you if you obey the LORD your God: 3You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country. 4The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock—the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. 5Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed. 6You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out.
We must remember God said IF we do what He wants, not just think about it or just talk about it, we must do it.
James 1:16-25
16Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers. 17Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. 18He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.
19My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, 20for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. 21Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.
22Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror 24and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does.
See God has called us to do His will, to be what He wants the way He wants us to be.
WHAT A DIFFERENCE A CHANGE MAKES
Once upon a time there was a prince who fell in love with a fair maiden. But his enemy captured the fair maiden and held her captive in a tower. Now the prince had a plan to rescue her, so he recruited the help of two small animals to send a message to the maiden. First there was Claude Caterpillar. Claude was a nice guy, and he didn’t mind helping fair maidens in distress. But Claude was kind of a crusty old character. You might wonder, Did he get up on the wrong side of the bed? Maybe he has a migraine headache or something. Anyway, the prince gave him the message, and he started inching along toward the tower. Being a fat little caterpillar, he had to work hard to get there, even sweat a bit. He thought to himself, Wouldn’t you know it, the sun would have to be shining today! Just then the weather began to change. Clouds moved in and little drops started coming down all around him. He grumbled, “Rain, of all things. And I just had this suit cleaned.” But Claude wasn’t a quitter. He made it to the tower and searched for a way up. A vine growing along one side was the obvious answer. Inch by inch up the vine Claude went, only to discover that it was a climbing rose bush. All the way up you could hear, “Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!” When he finally reached the window he heaved himself onto the ledge and said to the fair maiden, “Hey, lady! Come here! Are you the maiden in distress?” She nodded as she looked down at this sweaty, muddy little caterpillar. Claude gave her the once-over and said, “You’re kidding. You mean I came all the way up here for the likes of you. I don’t know what the prince sees in you. He sent me with a message, and you wouldn’t believe how hard it was for me to get here. His message was: ‘Get Ready.’ He’s coming to get you. Five o’clock sharp! Understand? All right! Good-bye!” And off went Claude.
Next the prince sent Barney Butterfly. Barney was not so sure of himself with the rain and wind, but he said he would try. His soft wings lifted him gracefully into the air. He struggled with all his might against the wind as it blew him back and forth. Just as he was about to reach the window, a bird swooped down and nearly ate him alive. After a frantic chase, Barney flew inside the window beyond the bird’s snapping beak. He flew about the room until the maiden noticed him. She reached out her hand, and he landed softly on her finger. She brought him close as he relayed the Prince’s message: “Lovely and favored maiden, the prince loves you dearly. At the sound of his voice, jump from the window and into his arms.” The maiden replied, “Thank you, beautiful butterfly. You are very sweet. But tell me, why did the caterpillar bring the good news in such a nasty manner? He seemed so rude and rough.”
The butterfly replied, “Oh, you mean Claude? Well, that’s just Claude. I used to be that way, too, until I was transformed.”
It is in changing that things find purpose.
2 Chronicles 7:14
14if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
We sometimes like to call on God’s promises but sometimes forget to see what we must do to get them. We like to think Jesus will be with us even to the end of the age but there is something that must be done first before we can claim His promise.
Matthew 28:18-20
18Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Did you see? Did you see what Jesus said we must do something and He will be with us even to the end of the age.
If we can overcome our desires for God and do what He wants we will receive a new name, a new name that Jesus will give us.
Revelation 3:11-13
11I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. 12Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on him my new name. 13He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
When we follow God He will not only hear us and answer us but He will be with us as in (read).
Matthew 18:19-20
19“Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. 20For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them.”
Beloved if we are God’s people called by His name we must do what He wants not what we want. What do you say? Will you follow the way He wants, doing what He wants and receive His blessing? You must decide today what you will do for there is no tomorrow promised on this earth for us. Please think about it then do something about it.
