As I review this past year in the life of our church, it is apparent that God has been speaking to us in a language of promise just as He did with the people of Israel. I did not review the past year from a standpoint of what went wrong and what went right. No instead I reviewed this year from a point of what did God say to us as a church?
We started 2007 concluding with our series of teachings from Hebrews 11. The question to ask ourselves is what did we learn from these series of lessons?
1. We learned that faith is the key to successful Christian living (of which I believe to be the theme of Hebrews 11).
2. We learned that in faith we must trust God through impossible situations.
3. We learned that in faith we must obey God even when we don’t have all the details.
4. We learned that those who kept the faith were rewarded for their faith.
5. We learned that we don’t have to be perfect for God to use us.
6. We learned that doubt is a natural response to things we don’t understand.
7. We learned that what seems impossible to us is not impossible for God.
Bottom-line for FGMBC: Faith is the key for the future success in the life of our church. We will never understand God’s power to do exceedingly abundantly above all we ask or think if we don’t trust God enough to step out in faith and try Him.
We also studied from the life of Joshua and his leading the people of Israel into the promise land. While this was a rich study for me personally. I believe it was beneficial for us a church in this season of ministry transition. There are some key themes that I believe are worth mentioning in this address.
→ Progress: Joshua chapter 1 – God encourages Joshua and the people of Israel to move forward. God is not concerned with so much as to where we’ve been but where we’re going. Yes, it is true, we will never forget our rich history here at FGMBC but we can never forget that what’s ahead is much brighter than where we’ve been.
→ Wait: Joshua chapter 3 – Joshua and the people of Israel are at the Jordan River on their way to the promise land of Canaan but could not cross because the water was too high. The only way to cross the Jordan River is that God had to perform a miracle. Church, there are some miracles that come immediately like the crossing at the Red Sea. But then there are some miracles that God makes us wait for until we’re ready. I believe God has us at the brink of miracle but there is still a little more waiting we have to do.
→ Obedience: Joshua chapter 6 – God commanded Joshua and the people of Israel to march around Jericho’s walls for 7 days to bring down those walls to take the city. This sounds ridiculous! But it’s never our job to question God about what He’s doing. It’s our responsibility to hear and obey the voice of the Lord no matter how ridiculous the command may seem to us.
→ Fight: Joshua 7-12 – We see the Joshua and the children of Israel in battle after battle to possess the land of promise. What this says to me, as your pastor, is that sometimes the blessings of God don’t come easy. There are going to be times when we must fight to possess and laid hold of all that God desires for us. Understand church, in every battle that we have to fight, God is fighting for and with us, we never fight alone.
→ Adjustments (Change): Joshua 13 – God tells Joshua; “You’re old and there is still much land to possess”. Joshua did one of the smartest things in his life time he didn’t try to do everything himself. Instead, Joshua recognized his age and his inability to complete all that needed to get done. So he divided the land has God gave direction. What smart leadership! I know many times people in the church are afraid of growth for fear that because of their age they maybe left behind and pushed aside. Growth in the church does not necessarily mean a pushing away of older members. Please understand that for every job completed there is still more work to be done. As the times change so do we. Methods change every day but the message remains the same.
Oh dear love ones, I know God has us in a strategic position to make a difference for His kingdom and to receive all that He has for us. But let me summarize all that has been said and it is our theme for 2008:
“Let God Do It”
As we enter into a new season of ministry let’s commit to “Let God Do It”.
Understand, however, that to let God do it doesn’t mean He’s to do it totally all by Himself. Yes, He can do it by Himself but God works through us (the church) to accomplish His will in the world. Remember these words written in this address; faith, obedience, progress, wait, fight, change, attitude. All these things and many more require us to do our part as God does His part. One way to do your part is to maintain a good attitude.
During the fourth quarter of 2007, we preached a series of sermons entitled “The Be-Attitudes for FGMBC”. This sermon was not based on Matthew 5 but it was a series of sermons based on proper attitudes for a church in transition, re-organization, and development such as ours. I believe with my whole heart that if the proper attitudes are not practiced on a consistent and daily basis we give room for the enemy to attack and destroy what God is trying build.
I encourage every member in our church to practice being:
► Positive - Phl 4:8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.
► Committed - Gal 6:6-9 One who is taught the word must share all good things with the one who teaches. Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.
► Flexible - 2Cr 1:12-22 For our boast is this: the testimony of our conscience that we behaved in the world with simplicity[fn3] and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the grace of God, and supremely so toward you. For we are not writing to you anything other than what you read and acknowledge[fn4] and I hope you will fully acknowledge— just as you did partially acknowledge us, that on the day of our Lord Jesus you will boast of us as we will boast of you. Because I was sure of this, I wanted to come to you first, so that you might have a second experience of grace. I wanted to visit you on my way to Macedonia, and to come back to you from Macedonia and have you send me on my way to Judea. Was I vacillating when I wanted to do this? Do I make my plans according to the flesh, ready to say “Yes, yes” and “No, no” at the same time? As surely as God is faithful, our word to you has not been Yes and No. For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we proclaimed among you, Silvanus and Timothy and I, was not Yes and No, but in him it is always Yes. For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory. And it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, and who has also put his seal on us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.
► Joyful - 1Th 5:16 Rejoice always,
► Prayerful - 1Th 5:17 pray without ceasing,
► Grateful - 1Th 5:18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
► A Witness – Jhn 4:39-42 Many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me all that I ever did.” So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them, and he stayed there two days. And many more believed because of his word. They said to the woman, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed the Savior of the world.”
Our attitude controls our behavior and our future accomplishments. It is evident in our text as well in Numbers 13 and 14.
God used Moses to lead His people out of their miserable past as slaves in Egypt to the threshold of their future in the Promised Land. There in the desert south of Israel, God showed them the land that He had promised to Abraham, their forefather, many years earlier.
God had already told Moses to send out an advance team to determine what the Israelites needed to do in order to take the land. Everything was set for them to cross the threshold to take what God had already given to them. But the advance team threw a wrench in the plan. Twelve men had been sent out, and ten of them came back with a report that frightened everyone who heard it. Only two young men believed that God would give them the land the team had explored. Having heard both reports, the Israelite elders had to make a decision about whether to cross the threshold into their future.
As a Church, we stand at a threshold (entrance) of new glorious better days in serving God. A threshold symbolizes a new beginning. After the wedding, for example, a new husband will cradle his new wife in his arms at the front door of their honeymoon suite. Then he will carry her across the threshold to signify the new life they will have together. Similarly, the owner of a new store in town will mark the first day of business by walking across the threshold with a photographer nearby to capture the moment with a photograph.
Before us are new possibilities and challenges. Also ahead of us are obstacles that can disappoint or even frighten us.
Twelve men were chosen to go out and spy out the land but two-different reports came back to Joshua and the people of Israel. And after studying this text for this address I discovered that people can see the same things in life but will tell in two different ways. In short, we as a church see what God is capable of doing but have a choose seeing it through negative eyes or positive eyes.
It’s been five years and I believe with all my heart the land God has for us rich and ripe. However, I’m not so sure that many of you in the church see the same thing. But I call us to make a decision today. As you and I stand on the threshold of your future what kind of person will you be, positive or negative?
This text shows us these two groups of people, which group will you be a part of in 2008?
Negative people are frightened by the future (vv.1-5).
The advance team’s majority report must have scared the people of Israel nearly to death! In their fear, they began to let their imaginations get the best of them.
Negative frightened people are complainers (v. 1-2) – They complained about God and their leaders. People that are frightened about the future can’t see beyond the right now. The people of Israel didn’t look towards the future instead they focused on where they were and it prevented them from seeing where they could be. The right now mentality is an enemy of progress towards the future.
Negative frightened people are comforters of the past (v. 3) -
They began to think that God had brought them to the new land only to brutalize them and their families. Then they began to rethink their decision to leave Egypt. In their fear they came to the conclusion that returning to Egypt would be a good idea. They even talked about appointing someone who would lead them back to safety in Egypt.
Numbers 11:4-6 gives us the impression that they had considered a retreat to Egypt earlier in their journey. Apparently they had grown tired of the manna God had given them to eat as they traveled through the desert. They wanted to return to Egypt so they could enjoy all of the culinary delicacies there.
But one problem had obviously not crossed their minds. The Egypt in their nostalgic imaginations didn’t exist anymore—if it ever existed at all.
When we face our future with fear, we can choose to reach for a blanket of nostalgia and warm ourselves in the recollections of what we considered to be the better days of the past. When we make that choice, we face the same problem. The better days we long for don’t exist anymore, and they never will again. In fact, the past of our nostalgia probably never existed at all.
Thank God for our yester years but don’t let our past prevent us from reaching the future. Yesterday was good but I declare tomorrow is even better.
Negative frightened people are contentious people (v.4-5) – Negative people will create controversy. The controversy is created in that they are ready to select a new leader to take them back to Egypt. I declare the tactic that enemy will use to destroy progress in the church is to create controversy among leadership.
The controversy grew so great that Moses and Aaron (leadership) fell on their faces, it would seem, in submission to the negative people of Israel.
As we prepare to walk into the good land of promise please be aware of negative frightened people. Don’t run from them and surely don’t bow to them but stand against them.
Positive people embrace the future (vv.6-10).
Two young men, Joshua and Caleb, gave the minority report. Then they pleaded with the leaders to move ahead to the land of their dreams instead of retreating to the land of their memories.
In their plea Joshua and Caleb pointed out some facts that could not be ignored.
First, the land would gives us opportunity to flourish as God’s people (v. 6-8). Even though they would have to face certain challenges as they stepped across the threshold into their future, the risk would be smaller than the reward.
God gives individual Christians, as well as entire congregations, a similar opportunity. What opportunity? To walk into the promises of God that has been laid before them and that is to posses the land.
Num 14:8 If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which flows with milk and honey.
I know there is much talk about possessing the land that’s flowing with milk and honey. The land flowing with milk and honey speaks a rich and fertile land. In other words, it means God will give us a land that does not lack any good thing in it.
- The land is rich: all we need to accomplish God’s will for our lives individually and corporately is found in the rich grounds of God’s resources. God never runs dry of resources.
- The land is ripe: Not only is the land rich but it is ripe. The land is bursting at it’s seams to reap a harvest. In other words, the land is not lacking sinners. Jesus said it best in Matthew 9:37; “The harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few.”
Bottom-line is if you do things according to God’s will, word, and way, we as a church will not lack any good thing from God.
Second, No one has said possessing the land would be easy (v. 9). We will experience failure, challenges, obstacles, trials, and tribulations. But we have this guarantee God will go with us as we take the land. We cannot fail because God has already given us the land just as he did with the people of Israel. Moving ahead would be an act of obedience to God.
Thirdly, opposition is inevitable (v. 10a) – The people were so frightened by the report of the majority that they wanted to stone Joshua and Caleb for their report of the land. Listen positive people of FGMBC, you must understand that sometimes you will have to stand by yourself when embracing the future. The reward is greater being obedient to God. So go ahead and let’s step into the future of promise because God is with us in all situations.
God has the last Word (v. 10a-24)
By the way, God showed up in the meeting of the Israelite leaders to give the last word (v. 10). He always does, and He always will. In these final verses we get glimpse of God’s character.
† God is sovereign (v. 10) – The text says God showed up in the midst of their meeting and it wasn’t positive. He’s upset at the way the meeting is going. His sovereignty steps in to bring order. Here’s the point worth mentioning, God controls everything even church business meetings.
† God is merciful (v. 11-19) – Before the mercy of God we see the wrath (anger) of God. God is upset with the way this meeting is going. There’s unbelief that God would give them the land of promise and He takes it personally. He’s so upset that he’s ready to take the Israel nation out. This serves as a warning to all of us, especially those who don’t believe and rebel against God. God will move you if you try to stop His progress. These people are fighting against the promises of God and God says if you don’t want the promise land move out the way and I will give to someone else. Had it not been for the prayer of Moses they would have experienced the wrath of God and not the mercy of God. Thank God for His mercy. As enter into the promise land if you have been one of those people negative people in church and you’re still here today, it is sign of God’s mercy to let you remain to have a change of heart and trust Him at all cost.
† God’s glory (v. 20-24) – The people of Israel has tested God’s glory in that He’s proven himself already in leading them out of Egyptian bondage, feeding them with manna from heaven, and quenching their thirst with water from a rock. The point is if God can do all of this and so much more we must believe he can give us the land of promise. And when he does give us the land of promise do yourself a favor and give God the glory for the wonderful things He has done.
Church, I am excited when I see the possibilities of our church. I’m excited when I see the opportunities laid before us to possess the land. Where we are as a church serves as a good opportunity for God to show up and to show out.
I exhort you, the members, of First Goodwill Missionary Baptist Church to let go and let God.
So choose well how you will proceed into a new season of ministry.
