Christian New Year’s Resolutions
By show of hands, how many of you made at least one New Year’s resolution?
How many of you made no resolutions because you still have not kept last year’s... or the year before.... or before... or before.
It reminds me of the man who, when asked what he got his wife for Christmas replied,
"Nothing. She still has not used what I got her last year." Well, what did you get here last
year? "A cemetery plot!"
Well, I certainly hope that none of us has need of one of those this year. However, I do think that we need resolutions.
In fact, Today, I want to share with you some resolutions that I hope you will make... AND KEEP!!!
These are not mine, not from me they are from some people that you might want to
listen to.
Without further delay.... let’s get started.
1. LIKE PAUL in Phil. 3:13.... Resolve to forget those things which are behind and press forward.
*** In the lower part of South Carolina is a very poisonous snake called the coral snake. It’s venom is very potent and very deadly. However, those people who live in that area rarely die from the bite because they know a secret.... "shake it off’. You see, while the venom is very deadly, the coral snake has no fangs with which to inject it like a rattler. Instead, it has to bite it’s victim and hang on while working it’s jaws back and forth like a scissor in order to penetrate the skin. If the would-be victim is knowledgeable, they will simply shake the snake off before he can inject the poison. So.... the greatest danger is not being bitten.... but allowing the snake to hang on.
That is how it is with sin.... often the greatest danger of sin is not the immediate consequences.... but the long term effects of allowing the sin to "hang on."
We all sin from time to time. We all make mistakes some times
I do not wish to diminish the severity of sin. But I do want to let you know that the greatest damage caused by sin is done by unconfessed, unrepented and guilt causing sin.
Guilt is like shackles that keep you in prison, that keep you from experiencing joy, happiness, peace, LIFE ABUNDANT!!!
*** A mailman got a new route. On the first porch he came to he was confronted by a ferocious-looking German Shepherd poised to jump. The mailman approached the mail
box and the dog sprang straight up, 5 feet, and landed in the same place, the mailman
was relieved to see the dog keep his distance. He asked the owner, who came to the door, "Why did he jump straight up like that?" The reply was, "Oh, we took his chain off yesterday, but he has not realized it yet.(3)
It was good for the mailman.... but bad for us.... our chains still hold us captive.
1. Agree with God IT IS SIN.... IT IS SERIOUS.... CONFESS IT.... REPENT OF IT...
AND MOVE ON!!!!!
2. LIKE DAVID in Psalm 121:1.... lift up our eyes to the hills from which cometh our help.
The greatest sin that we often commit against our selves, our families, and our God is to look in the wrong direction.
How many of you know what prestidigitation is? Some of you are probably thinking "I don’t know what it is but it sounds like something you would not do in public."
It means "slight of hand"... or in French, "Legerdemain." (2)
All of what we call "magic" performed by David Copperfield and others, is really slight of hand or.... the art of misdirection.... getting you to look in one direction so that you don’t see what is happening somewhere else.
Satan is the greatest of all magicians, prestidigitators, misdirectors.
He loves to get us to look in the wrong direction... especially when we are in need or in trouble.
Satan wants us to look .... TO STUFF.... money, power, friends, savings, alliance, knowledge, science, self, cunning, etc.
Because he knows that those things are not the real source of help. He knows those things will all fail us.
And he knows that if we were to look in the right direction,.. TO GOD... we would find true help and would be victorious over him and his snares.
The truth is that most of the times when we failed and stumbled last year... we were looking in the wrong direction
we looked in the wrong direction and got in trouble
we looked in the wrong direction and stayed in trouble
Let’s resolve that this year, when I am in need.... I WILL LOOK UNTO GOD FROM WHENCE MY HELP COMETH.
3. LIKE ENOCH in Genesis 5:24.... Walk in daily fellowship with our heavenly father
That walk takes several things
Daily reading of the Word
Daily time in prayer
Daily obedience
Daily confession
Daily service
Daily dying to self
Christianity is not a religion, not a system, not a belief... it is an active, growing, living, daily relationship with a person.... with God Himself.
It is not a sprint.... it’s a marathon.
In the new year, come on, let’s work to make it "more" daily.
4. LIKE MOSES in Hebrews 11:25.... Choose to suffer rather than to enjoy the
pleasures of sin for a short while
Moses was living "in the lap of luxury." He had servants to do his bidding and meet his every desire.
Into that life, God came and called Moses to a task... a task that if done, would cause him
to lose all of those luxuries.... and in fact.... to suffer rejection by those he called family
and to live "on the lam" on the run, in poverty, in disgrace.
Moses had to make a decision... the luxuries or the Lord... opulence or obedience., substance or suffering.
Moses took the long-term view He understood that he could suffer for a while and enjoy the fruits eternally OR he could enjoy the fruits for a while and suffer eternally.
Unfortunately.... Most Christians cannot see life from that vantage-point.... they have bought into Satan’s lies that you can have it all.... you can enjoy the fruits of this world and still have the fruits of eternity
I am not saying that Christianity is a choice between possessions and poverty or riches and righteousness.
There are rich, obedient, happy Christians!
But Moses made a choice about priorities. God or mammon
Moses decided that God was first and whatever riches he could enjoy while maintaining his righteousness was fine... but any riches that would cause him to compromise his righteousness would be forsaken.
The danger is not what you have but what has you...
*** Ernest Hemmingway used to give things away at the first of the year. He said that he did it to prove that he owned them. He said that if he wasn’t able to give them away, he did’t own them.
You can have friends, riches, education, prestige, whatever....
BUT if you are ever faced with the decision between having versus righteousness YOU
MUST CHOOSE THE LATER!!!
Moses was willing to suffer the loss of any thing rather than experience the loss of his intimacy with God.
ARE YOU????????????????
5. LIKE GIDEON in Judges 6&7... Advance, even when my friends are few
Usually, when we are faced with a decision on doing something or going somewhere, we make the decision based on the crowd.
The truth is… In matters of righteousness and morality....
THE CROWD IS USUALLY WRONG!!!!!
To be righteous will call for you to make the same decision that Moses made
choose to suffer rejection of men for a while rather than the rejection of God for eternity.
6 LIKE ANDREW in John 1:42
Strive to bring our brother to Christ
I’m not going to split hairs with you over Cain’s question, "Who is my brother?" Your brother may be your literal brother... or sister, or child, or parent
Your brother may be your next door neighbor your co-worker your room-mate your best friend
Andrew WENT to his brother and BROUGHT him to Jesus
You may need to invite them to church, or a bible study, or singing service
You don’t have to make yourself GO to your brother.... you go
Go = INTENTIONALITY intentionally speaking to him about Jesus, faith, spiritual things
GO = turn the conversation, ask the tough questions
GO = intentional Christian life-style witness
It is rare that they will find Jesus on their own
You have to INTENTIONALLY bring them.
Why are New Year’s resolutions important? Especially since we all seem to break most of them?
I think they are important because
They are an admission that we have failed CONFESSION
They are expressions of a desire to change REPENTANCE
And those two things are necessary for forgiveness.
