Making Promises That Stick
Psalm 76:11
Purpose: To describe the importance of making promises to God.
Aim: I want the listener to pick out one change that they should make and thoughtfully promise the Lord to make that change.
INTRODUCTION: How would you like 2008 to be better than 2007? One tradition that believers and non-believers share is making New Year’s resolutions. What do you think is the most popular resolution? The 5th was to take up a new hobby, the 4th was to make more money, the 3rd most popular resolution was to improve relationships, the 2nd was to stop smoking, and the most popular New Years resolution, you guessed it, losing weight.
One young boy asked his father what his new year’s resolution was, and his father said he was going to do everything possible in the new year to make his mother very happy. The boy asked his mother what hers was, and she said, “To do everything possible to make sure your father keeps his resolution.”
One lady made a resolution to never say never. Think about that for a minute. It is a running joke that most New Year’s resolutions don’t last past the month of January.
✔ New Year’s resolutions can quickly lead us into New Year desolation.
For a Christian, though, there is a heart felt desire to change and be more like Christ.
✔ 1 John 2:6 the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked. (NAU)
In order to make promises that stick, we must understand at least three things.
I. God Takes Promises Seriously
Matthew 23:16-22 16 “Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears by the temple, that is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple is obligated.’ 17 “You fools and blind men! Which is more important, the gold or the temple that sanctified the gold? 18 “And, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, that is nothing, but whoever swears by the offering on it, he is obligated.’ 19 “You blind men, which is more important, the offering, or the altar that sanctifies the offering? 20 “Therefore, whoever swears by the altar, swears both by the altar and by everything on it. 21 “And whoever swears by the temple, swears both by the temple and by Him who dwells within it. 22 “And whoever swears by heaven, swears both by the throne of God and by Him who sits upon it. (NAU)
In other words, anytime we make a promise the Lord takes it seriously. The religious rulers fell into the trap of hedging their promises. If they didn’t keep a promise, they would say, “Well, I didn’t promise by anything that was really important.” It doesn’t matter how important we think that the promise is. We can’t say that any promise we make isn’t important.
Numbers 30:2 “If a man makes a vow to the Lord, or takes an oath to bind himself with a binding obligation, he shall not violate his word; he shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth. (NAU)
Deuteronomy 23:21-23 21 “When you make a vow to the Lord your God, you shall not delay to pay it, for it would be sin in you, and the Lord your God will surely require it of you. 22 “However, if you refrain from vowing, it would not be sin in you. 23 “You shall be careful to perform what goes out from your lips, just as you have voluntarily vowed to the Lord your God, what you have promised. (NAU)
Every church member here at Bethel Chapel has made some serious promises. We will look at them in a moment.
II. We Should Make Promises
Often we don’t keep the promises we make, so we might just decide not make any promises so we don’t have to carry the guilt of not keeping them.
But Paul warns us: ☛ Ephesians 5:15-17 15 Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, 16 making the most of your time, because the days are evil. 17 So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. (NAU)
Here Paul is giving us three reasons why we should make promises to our God.
A. Make promises because time is limited “making the most of your time”
Psalm 39:4 “Lord, make me to know my end And what is the extent of my days; Let me know how transient I am. (NAU)
If I live to be 80 years old, I have about 9,125 days left to live.
Jesus taught that time was precious. John 7:33 Therefore Jesus said, “For a little while longer I am with you, then I go to Him who sent Me. (NAU) John 9:4 “We must work the works of Him who sent Me as long as it is day; night is coming when no one can work. (NAU) John 11:9 Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. (NAU) John 12:35 So Jesus said to them, “For a little while longer the Light is among you. Walk while you have the Light, so that darkness will not overtake you; he who walks in the darkness does not know where he goes. (NAU)
Paul felt the same way. Galatians 6:10 So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith. (NAU)
If we are not careful, we will find ourselves always planning to serve Christ without ever actually doing it. We can go though life thinking that we will get serious about serving Christ as soon as our present circumstances get better.
Gary Freeman tells about a girl who went to college and she just hated it. But she told herself, "If I can ever get out of college and get married and have children, I know I’ll finally be able to enjoy life."
So she stuck with it. She went to classes every day and finally graduated from college. Then she got married and had children, and discovered that children are a lot of work. So she told herself, "If I can just get these kids raised, then I’ll be able to relax and really enjoy life."
But about the time the kids were entering high school her husband said, "Guess what? We don’t have enough money to send our kids to college. I guess you’ll have to get a job."
Well, she didn’t want to, but she knew he was right and they needed the money, so she went to work. And she hated it. But she told herself, "If I can just get these kids out of college, and get all of the bills paid, then I can quit work and really enjoy life."
Finally, the last child graduated from college, and all the bills were paid. So she walked into her employer’s office and said, "I quit." He said, "Oh, you don’t want to quit now. If you stay with us just another 8 years you’ll have a pension for the rest of your life."
She thought, "Well, I don’t want to work another 8 years, but there’s all that money there, and I really can’t turn down the opportunity." So she worked for another 8 years. Finally, she and her husband retired at the same time. They sold their home and bought a little retirement cottage.
Then they sat down on the swing on their front porch and looked at the family picture album and dreamed about the good old days.
When we are changing and becoming more like Christ, then we can “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!” (Philippians 4:4 NAU) We should enjoy the journey!
B. Make promises because evil is strong “the days are evil”
Satan is thief, and one of the things he tries to rob from us is our time. Just think of the time we waste sinning. Think of the time wasted in bars or in casinos or in worthless entertainment. Think of the time wasted by gossiping or spreading rumors. Just think about all the time we waste worrying about what might happen or dwelling on the things we cannot change. Satan is a thief!
We are engaged in spiritual warfare and we can’t afford to put off serving Christ.
There is an old fable about three demons. They were arguing about what was the best way to destroy Christianity. The first demon said, “Let’s tell all Christians that there is no heaven. Take away the reward incentive and Christianity will collapse.” The second demon said I have a better idea. “Let’s tell all Christians that there is no hell. Take away the fear of punishment and Christianity will disappear.” The third demon disagreed. He said, “The best way to destroy Christianity is to tell Christians that there is no hurry.” Immediately, they all agreed, “That’s it! All we have to do I tell them there’s no hurry and the whole Christian movement will collapse.”
Romans 13:11-12 11 Do this, knowing the time, that it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now salvation is nearer to us than when we believed. 12 The night is almost gone, and the day is near. Therefore let us lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. (NAU)
The Lord gives us windows of opportunities to serve Him that often don’t stay open very long. 2 Timothy 4:3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, (NAU)
C. Make promises because priorities need to be set “what the will of the Lord is.”
The question is not “What is wrong with what I’m doing?” The question is, “Am I doing what God wants me to do?”
Proverbs 17:24 Wisdom is in the presence of the one who has understanding, But the eyes of a fool are on the ends of the earth. (NAU)
✔ Fools focus on too many things.
So ask yourself, "Who or what is most important in my life?" If you said, “Following Christ” then make sure that really is the most important thing in your life. For example, when you have to decide between sleeping in or worshiping God, you’ll worship God. When an interesting movie is playing, but you haven’t spent much time with the Lord lately, you’ll skip the movie and spend some time with the Lord.
Here is another area where we often get our priorities wrong. The two of the greatest enemies of right priorities are guilt over things we did in the past, and worry about the future. Many of us are living either in the past or in the future.
Guilt is solved when we repent of our sin and believe God when He says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9 NAU)
Worry is solved when we learn to believe God when He says, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” (Philippians 4:6 NAU)
One of my favorite stories has to do with the 1959 Biblical epic’s called “Ben Hur”
One of the most famous scenes in that movie was the climatic chariot race, which required 5 weeks of filming, 15,000 extras, and 18 chariots – nine to be used by the stunt crew during practice.
In the spirit of authenticity, Charlton Heston actually learned to drive the 4 horse vehicles. But after weeks of practice, he expressed concern about the final shoot.
He took the stunt coordinator aside and “I can drive the chariot, but I’m not sure I can win.”
“Chuck, you just make sure you stay in the chariot,” the stunt coordinator replied, “and I’ll make sure you win the race.”
Likewise, God is saying to us: “Just stay in the chariot… and I’ll make sure you win the race.”
The answer is not to be nervous about doing everything right, the answer is to establish priorities and then made decisions based on them.
Martha was doing a good thing by preparing a meal for Jesus, but she didn’t have the right priorities. Luke 10:41-42 41 But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; 42 but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.” (NAU)
✔ She was so focused on what she was doing that she forgot that God was in her living room.
There are three things we need to know before our promises will stick. So far we’ve learned that: God Takes Promises Seriously and We Should Make Promises. We must also understand that:
III. Changing Who We Are Is More Important Than Changing What We Do
A. God is not impressed with hasty words
Ecclesiastes 5:1-2 1 Guard your steps as you go to the house of God and draw near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools; for they do not know they are doing evil. 2 Do not be hasty in word or impulsive in thought to bring up a matter in the presence of God. For God is in heaven and you are on the earth; therefore let your words be few. (NAU)
B. God is not impressed with worship that doesn’t change the heart
Isaiah 1:11-17 11 “What are your multiplied sacrifices to Me?” Says the Lord. “I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams And the fat of fed cattle; And I take no pleasure in the blood of bulls, lambs or goats. 12 “When you come to appear before Me, Who requires of you this trampling of My courts? 13 “Bring your worthless offerings no longer, Incense is an abomination to Me. New moon and sabbath, the calling of assemblies— I cannot endure iniquity and the solemn assembly. 14 “I hate your new moon festivals and your appointed feasts, They have become a burden to Me; I am weary of bearing them. 15 “So when you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide My eyes from you; Yes, even though you multiply prayers, I will not listen. Your hands are covered with blood. 16 “Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; Remove the evil of your deeds from My sight. Cease to do evil, 17 Learn to do good; Seek justice, Reprove the ruthless, Defend the orphan, Plead for the widow. (NAU)
In light of what we have learned, let’s review the promise that every member here at Bethel has made.
a. All members are expected to conscientiously subscribe to the Doctrinal Statement of the Church.
b. It is the duty of all members to regularly attend the services of this Church, to contribute to its financial support, and to support its benevolent objectives.
c. It is the duty of members to abide in mutual love, to give active concern for the spiritual and temporal welfare of all, to make use of all the means of grace, and to be obedient to the will of the Lord.
d. It is the duty of members to be actively serving the Lord in this Church whenever possible.
e. It is the duty of members to honor and esteem their Pastor and all the leaders of the Church in the exercise of their offices.
f. It shall be the duty of all members to inform the Official Board of every change of address.
Would every member of Bethel Chapel Church please stand and read our church covenant with me.
"It is my desire to be received into the membership of Bethel Chapel Church of Philadelphia. I cheerfully accept and subscribe to the Articles of Faith and the Constitution of this Church.
In assuming this membership, I agree to be loyal to the interests of this Church, to seek its purity and prosperity, to do some definite Christian work, to be subject to the discipline of the Church and to contribute financially as the Lord shall prosper me. If at any time I find myself out of harmony with the Articles of Faith or practices of this Church, or if my conduct or belief is called in question, I agree to apply the Scripture’s formula for solving problems as outlined in Matthew 5:23-24; and Matthew 18:15. If it be found that I am unwilling to settle the differences on Scriptural grounds I will expect the Official Board to make every effort to restore me to fellowship in accordance with Matthew 18:16-17.
In case I fail to attend the services of this church for six months or to communicate a good reason for my absence, I authorize the Official Board to drop my name from the membership roll."
CONCLUSION: This covenant is a challenge as well as a promise we have made to God and to each other. Let’s make sure that don’t forget what we have promised here.
Are there other promises that you know you need to make to the Lord?
✔ "There is no growth without challenge, and there is no challenge without change."Warren Wiersbe
