A Fresh Commitment to Christ
This month, we have focused on the book of Joshua, and on how God has spoken through that book to our hearts. I know it has spoken to me. The promises found in that book have been so significant, so amazing, so comforting and so energizing. Yes, energizing because we see what God can do with someone who is fully committed to God’s plan and God’s direction.
We have read how God used Joshua to lead the children of Israel after the death of Moses, how God used Him to lead them across the river. To lead them to face Jericho. To see that, in God, they could find the victory.
Here is one way to look at it - If Joshua represents us as Christians with a new promise; then Jericho represents the largest obstacles we face. At Jericho…we face our fears, we cling to God in the darkest night, we seek clear answers to seemingly insurmountable walls.
Great promises have emerged from this great book. Promises that we can cling to even today. As our church marches forward, as our church continues to seek out God’s will and God’s plan, we find energizing words in this one book. Words that will inspire us to reach this community and this world for Christ.
Over the past month, we’ve focused on statements like WE ARE ALL JOSHUAS; A NEW PROVISION, A NEW VISION, AND A FRESH ENCOUNTER WITH CHRIST; FACING OUR JERICHOS; A WALL, A WAY, and a WIN; and most of all, we have talked about this one phrase that sums them up, NOT I, BUT CHRIST.
We will face many walls, but we only have one WAY to conquer…Christ is not our best weapon - He is our ONLY Hope. NOT I BUT CHRIST is not a slogan…it is our ONLY way to victory.
This phrase is what we must claim if we are to experience Christ’s fullness in our lives and if we are to experience His power, His encouragement and His victory in our lives. It is a phrase that we will repeat over and over in the future of this church. A phrase that says so much in so few words. NOT I, BUT CHRIST.
When we realize what God can do in us. When we realize that in our weakness, God’s power is manifest in us and we can accomplish anything. That is what the phrase is all about. Last week, I shared with you how as I now stand in the role that my dad stood in for 51 years, that I know I don’t have within me what it takes to lead this great church into the future.
But I told you, I promised you, that I am committed to seeking God’s power, God’s abilities, God’s direction and God’s plan. And in that weakness, God is strong. God will use a man who realizes his inability far more than a man who thinks he can conquer the world in his own power.
You remember that after hearing that someone would soon deny the Lord, Peter declared to Jesus that “No matter what anybody else does, I will never deny you!” This may sound like a good thing at first, but Peter was intending on accomplishing this grandiose spiritual goal by his own power.
What happened next? Jesus decided to give Peter a simple test. A simple test of faith in order to see how strong Peter really was. You see, Jesus first provided Peter with an opportunity to be victorious with a very simple spiritual goal.
What was that test? Jesus asked Peter to simply pray with him for one hour. For one hour - Just pray. For if Peter was able to tap into the power of the Holy Spirit in the small things, he would undoubtedly be able to be victorious in the larger things.
Jesus wanted to see if Peter’s “Go-To-Response” was to say “I can’t do this on my own. Not I, but Christ!” But did Peter rely on God’s power? No. And in fact, Jesus came back after one hour to find Peter sound asleep.
So, Jesus made a point to once again stress to Peter the importance of relying on the power of God to get through life. In Matthew 26:41, Jesus said:
"Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
He told Peter that my power is both available and eager to help anyone who will call on me for help. If you need it, you got it!
And today at TRBC, the same resurrection power is available to you and me. As Paul says in Philippians 3:10a:
"I [can] know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead." [New Living Translation]
It is that same resurrection power that makes the astounding promise to us in Philippians 4:13:
"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."
My friends, I am committed to God’s power. I am committed to following Christ. I am committed to seeking His will and together, we will experience His victory. And I ask you to “Follow me as I follow Christ.” Follow me as we claim … Not I, but Christ.”
And I believe that the victory that God has in store for us as a church is nothing short of revival. I have sensed God at work in our midst these past few weeks. I’ve seen how God is speaking to hearts, how God is moving in our services, how God is giving us a new vision for souls. And that, my friends, is where revival begins.
And I believe that revival is just around the corner. Last Sunday night, as we came together as a church, during the invitation, this altar was literally filled by you, praying out to God to lead us to a renewed excitement for souls. Well over a thousand people filled this altar, and we felt the power in this room.
I believe that revival is approaching. That is what dad talked about last year when we moved into this building. He spoke of seeing God move at TRBC in the next five years even more so than He had in the previous 50 years. For that to happen, we must see revival. And that revival, I believe, is rearing its head.
But church, revival can only come from what we will talk about here today. You see, today is Father’s Day. A day when we honor those dads, those men who have impacted our lives so significantly. Those men that God has used to influence who we are in Christ.
Today, we are going to look at Joshua chapter 24. In these words, we read what must happen if we are to experience revival. You see, revival can only come when God’s church experiences a FRESH COMMITMENT to Christ. My friends, revival begins at home.
In our hearts, in our homes, in our families, then in our church, then in our city, in our nation, and in our world. Revival begins at home.
And in Joshua 24:14-18, we read of exactly what Joshua said about the importance of this fresh commitment. A FRESH COMMITMENT to revival in our hearts.
Josh. 24:14 “Now therefore, fear the LORD, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the LORD! 15 And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” 16 So the people answered and said: “Far be it from us that we should forsake the LORD to serve other gods; 17 for the LORD our God is He who brought us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, who did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way that we went and among all the people through whom we passed. 18 And the LORD drove out from before us all the people, including the Amorites who dwelt in the land. We also will serve the LORD, for He is our God.”
As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. For HE is our God. These are the words that we must claim to experience revival. You see, if we don’t see revival in our own homes, in our own families, then we will never see revival in this church.
You know what is so interesting about the first century families who believe in Christ? Have you ever wondered why in the New Testament, whenever a parent gets saved, why you commonly find the words “and their house” immediately following? For example, in Acts 16:15a, the Bible says:
16a [Lydia] was baptized, and her household…
In the same chapter, Paul tells the Philippian Jailor in verse 31, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house."
Why does the New Testament commonly say that when a parent accepts Christ that their whole house will accept Christ too?
Because in Biblical times, the parents – especially the Father – were so trusted that if a father was to stand up with deep conviction and say to his family, “The way to live our lives is to follow the living Christ,” then it was a ‘given’ that their family members would trust his judgment and follow suit!
In essence, one could almost assume that the entire family would say, “If my Dad will wholly commit his life to Christ, then so will I!”
We must have a church family that is wholly committed to Christ, wholly committed to an intimate relationship with Christ, wholly committed to His will in our lives.
Do you see the beauty of the context of this verse? When Joshua said these words in chapter 24…HE DID NOT HAVE A HOME!
Communities were still in their infancy, and cities as we know them were afar off. Joshua was committed to serve the Lord with his HOUSE…it was NOT a building- it was not brick and mortar…it was not fellowship halls or sanctuaries. He was speaking of his family…his home…his children.
That is when revival will come. That is when revival will blow these doors off. That is when we will see heaven come down, like never before.
My friends, my commitment to you as pastor of this church, is that we are going to seek God’s hand moving in our midst over the next five years like never before. That is the direction that we will be heading as a church. Everything we do as a church family will be focused on seeking revival. Revival in our hearts, in our homes and in this church.
In 1977, 30 years ago, dad began offering this pin…the Jesus First pin…to anyone who wanted it. He sent them out by the millions, free of charge. To give people all over this world a symbol that they could use to tell others that Christ was the most important things in their lives.
Today, I believe we should once again call Christians around the world to wear this pin. To claim that Jesus first in their lives. To wear this pin as an outward display of their inward commitment. To perhaps start the groundswell that will result in revival across our land, and across the world.
We are going to send these pins, along with a card that dad wrote that tells the wearer how to use this pin as a tool to reach the world with the Gospel. If you want some of these pins, call us or go to FALWELL.COM/PINS and we’ll send them to you free of charge.
We want revival, but for that hope to come true, for that to occur, we must have a FRESH COMMITMENT in the homes of our church. The families of our church must be committed to family revival.
Psa. 127:1 Unless the LORD builds the house,
They labor in vain who build it;
Unless the LORD guards the city,
The watchman stays awake in vain.
2 It is vain for you to rise up early,
To sit up late, To eat the bread of sorrows;
For so He gives His beloved sleep.
3 Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD,
The fruit of the womb is a reward.
4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior,
So are the children of one’s youth.
5 Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them;
They shall not be ashamed,
But shall speak with their enemies in the gate.
As I spent time praying and thinking about this sermon today. This Father’s Day sermon. I tried to put together the ideas on paper that I wanted to share on the importance of building homes that love God, serve God, honor God and share God.
Then, earlier this week, I sat down and watched a video that said what needed to be said far better than I could on this day.
Together, let’s watch this video.
Godly men and Godly women. That is what it is all about. That is what is necessary for revival to begin. We call for revival, we pray for revival, we talk about revival. But revival can’t happen in our church until it happens in your heart. In all of our hearts. We have to seek out that type of intimacy with Christ for revival to occur.
For us to experience God pouring out His blessings on this church more in the next five years than He did in the previous 50, we must seek revival in our own hearts. Those 5 minutes we just watched were the words dad shared on May 13, 2007 in the 6pm service. 36 hours later, God called my dad home.
But in those words he shared, we see what he believed to be so important in his job as pastor of this church for 51 years. Building homes that loved God. Raising up Godly fathers, Godly mothers and then, Godly children. As your pastor, I, too, share the same sentiments of the Apostle John when he said in III John verse 4:
4 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.
That is what we focus on today. That is what we will focus on tomorrow. If we are to experience revival, it must begin within our own hearts. And it begins in our hearts when we earnestly pray out to God for Him to move in our lives like never before.
Do you know the definition of commitment? It is a TOTAL ABANDONMENT to the will of God. Are you abandoned to His will? Really? Are you willing to go where He says go, do what He says do, and be what He has called you to be…without question, without qualification and without hesitation?
That is what I am calling you to do today. I am calling on the men in this church to make that FRESH COMMITMENT to an intimacy with Christ like never before. To seek His will in your life, to seek His direction. To develop a prayer life that is unequaled. To develop a Bible study time in your life that is meaningful. And to help your family do the same thing.
I am also calling on the women of this church to commit to this as well. I am calling on the children of this church. I am calling on everyone in our church to yearn for a relationship with Christ that will prepare our hearts for revival. That our passion would rival the passion of King David in Psalm 42:1: “As the deer pants for water, so my soul pants after you, O, God.”
And when that happens, I’m telling you the blessings of Heaven will pour out on this church, on this city, and on this world. We must continue to take Christ to the world. And it begins within our hearts. Gal. 2:20, "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me."
For some people in the sanctuary, you are struggling with…
Family fights, Financial struggles, Job loss, Betrayal by friends
Direction in your life, Wayward children, Angry spouses, Broken friendships, A horrible past, An uncertain future.
Are you willing to totally, completely and unapologetically lay it on this altar today? Are you willing to surrender your will to His will? Are you willing to take the hand of your family members, or children, and ask God for a FRESH START? Leave the fights of yesterday at this altar, leave the DOUBTS of yesterday at this altar, leave the CHALLENGES of yesterday at this altar, leave the SINS of yesterday at this altar,
To make a FRESH COMMITMENT to Him and then experience the FRESH TOUCH that only God can give.
If you have never really accepted Jesus as your personal Savior, would you do it right now? Do not delay or put it off. If you would like to receive Christ by faith, pray this simple prayer in your heart:
Dear Lord, I acknowledge that I am a sinner. I believe Jesus died for my sins on the cross, and rose again the third day. I repent of my sins. By faith I receive the Lord Jesus as my Savior. You promised to save me, and I believe You, because You are God and cannot lie. I believe right now that the Lord Jesus is my personal Savior, and that all my sins are forgiven through His precious blood. I thank You, dear Lord, for saving me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
If you prayed that prayer, God heard you and saved you. I personally want to welcome you to the family of God and rejoice with you.
