Last week we began a series entitled “Do Not Lose Heart.” We established the point that many people lose heart as they travel the path of life. I mentioned Jim Ryun, who was a long distance runner. At one point in his life he lost heart with running and walked off of the track. He quit. He was discouraged. I mentioned my grand-father. He lost heart when my grand-mother died. He wasted away for three years before his own death occurred. I mentioned a teenager, in my home town, which lost heart because she was having trouble with her parents and she broke up with her boy friend. I mentioned Marilyn Monroe who lost heart because she was viewed as a sex object and not a person of value. She committed suicide. In addition, many people in our society have lost heart. The economy has caused many to lose heart. Many businesses have failed. Many people have lost jobs. Many have lost their retirement savings.
People sometimes approach the Lord for strength with the mind-set of the old song on the Hee-Haw TV show--"gloom, despair, agony on me, deep dark depression, excessive misery."
(Contributed to Sermon Central by Clarence Clough)
Joke: A number of movie stars are in despair because their homes have lost value. Eddie Murphy’s 32-room mansion in Englewood, New Jersey, which he calls Bubble Hill, has been on the market for $30 million for five years without a sale, so last month Murphy slashed the price of the property in half. The homes has a bowling alley, indoor pool, elevator, full-size racquetball court, theater, and recording studio Eddie is now asking only $15 million for it.
If you’re in the market for something a little more reasonable, Whitney Houston has cut the price of her NJ estate in half. This is the estate where she married Bobby Brown. Her price is down from $5.6 million to $2.5 million. The home is a 12,561-square-foot gated property (Yahoo web site)
Tough times take their toll on us. A passenger on an ocean liner was enduring a rough Atlantic crossing. He was standing by the rail on the ship and leaned over the rail in his sickness. His face a shade of green. A steward came along and tried to encourage him: "Don’t be discouraged, sir! No one’s ever died of seasickness yet!" The nauseous passenger looked up at the steward with horror and said, "Don’t say that! It’s the hope of dying that’s kept me alive this long!"
(From a sermon by Jimmy Chapman, "WHAT SHOULD I DO IN THE MIDST OF A STORM" 2/12/2009) (Contributed by SermonCentral Staff)
Last week we began a series entitled “Do Not Lose Heart.” This series is based on II Cor. 4. We are looking at a man who faced difficult circumstances. If anybody had a reason to give up, he did. However, he did not lose heart. Look at II Cor. 4:8-9. “We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed.” Twice in this chapter Paul testifies that he did not lose heart (vs. 1 and vs. 16).We want to sit at Paul’s feet and learn from him. He displays some secrets that we need to know. We can discover these secrets as we examine the context of II Cor. 4. Last week we looked at one principle. The first principle was to rely on the goodness of God. Paul refers to the “mercy” of God in verse 1. God’s goodness will sustain us during difficult times. I shared a verse from the Psalms. “I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord In the land of the living.” Ps. 27:13
In the Bible, Biblical characters often suffered trials but they continued to affirm God’s mercy, grace and love. One of the best known characters who experienced pain and suffering was Job. Job experienced five major catastrophes. One day a group of his enemies, the Sabaens raided and took away Job’s oxen, donkeys, and the servants who guarded them. On another occasion a disaster struck and killed all of his sheep and the servants who guarded them. Next, another group of his enemies, the Chaldeans, raided and took his camels and the servants who guarded them. Then a tornado struck a tent in which Job’s sons were partying and killed all of his sons. Finally, Job himself was struck with boils. In the midst of this crisis Job’s wife discouraged Job. She said "Do you still hold to your integrity? Curse God and die!’’ Job replied by saying “You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?’’ Job affirmed the goodness of God.
In II Cor. 12:7-10 the apostle Paul is given a thorn in the flesh. We do not know what the thorn to be. It could have been illness. It could have been a person. It could have been a ministry difficulty. Paul prayed three times that God would remove the thorn. The answer Paul received was “My grace is sufficient for you.” God’s goodness kept Paul as he faced the thorn, whatever it was. Job and Paul not only believed in the grace of God but they also experienced it. They drew strength from God’s grace.
I want to lead you in considering a second principle found in II Cor. 4. It will give you strength when faced with despair. The principle is this: rely on the power of God that is at work in you.
God is at work. Look for it. Charlie Brown, Lucy, and Linus were lying on the ground, looking up into the sky. Lucy says, "If you use your imagination, you can see lots of things in the cloud formations. What do you think you see, Linus?" Linus responds, "Well, those clouds up there look like the map of the British Honduras on the Caribbean. And that cloud looks a little like the profile of Thomas Eakins, the famous painter and sculptor. And that group of clouds over there gives me the impression of the stoning of Stephen. I can see the Apostle Paul standing to one side." Lucy congratulates him, "Uh huh, that’s very good. What do you see in the clouds, Charlie Brown?" Charlie Brown replies, "Well, I was going to say I saw a ducky and a horsie, but I changed my mind."
(Contributed to Sermon Central by Bob Joyce)
Look at verse 16. “We do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.”
When you become a believer God begins a work in you. The Bible describes this experience as being born again. When you accept Jesus Christ you are not a fully developed follower. The new birth begins a pilgrimage. It starts a developmental process for the believer.
Our first grandchild was born in April. He just turned six months old. He is developing. The other day he discovered his toe and stuck his toe in his mouth. A new believer is like a baby. He follows a developmental process. As the believer develops, God works in the believer.
This is what Paul refers to in verse 16. The outward man is decaying. This is your physical being. You are getting older. However, for the believer the spiritual man is being renewed every day.
Our outward man is decaying. Every day cells die.
Our inward man is being renewed day by day. If you are going through a trial God wants to use it. Notice verse 17. “Our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.” God uses the trials, that would drive you to despair, to renew and rebuild you.
You might underline two words in your Bible. In chapter 3:18 underline the word “transformed.” In chapter 4:16 underline the word “renewed.” Those words convey the same idea. The word translated changed or transformed (in 3:18) describes a change on the outside that comes from the inside. Our English word metamorphosis is a transliteration of this Greek word. Metamorphosis describes the process that changes an insect from a larva into a pupa and then into a mature insect. The changes come from within. We become more like the Lord Jesus Christ as God works in us.
God is at work in your moment of despair. He is working in you. In the past ten years Faith Baptist got her start. Faith has experienced many of the trials that young churches go through. Those trials have made us into the unique people we are today.
God is up to something good. I like what one pastor said about his church. The Spirit of God is present and we’re gonna have church. God is up to something... discouraged folks cheer up, dishonest folks ’fess up, sour folks sweeten up, closed folk, open up, gossipers shut up, conflicted folks make up, sleeping folks wake up, lukewarm folk, fire up, dry bones shake up, and pew potatoes stand up! But most of all, Christ the Savior of all the world is lifted up.
(SOURCE: Rick Kirchoff, Germantown United Methodist Church, Opening remarks to the Memphis Annual Conference. Citation: Tim Zingale in Pentecost Sunday on www.sermoncentral.com.
(Contributed to Sermon Central by SermonCentral PRO)
A story from a Vietnam veteran testifies of God’s transforming work. I served as an airborne Ranger platoon leader (paratrooper) in the First Air Cavalry Division during the Vietnam War. Our company was hacked up pretty badly by the enemy during one mission. When our platoon survivors returned to base camp, we all trudged down the muddy path to our tent. As the men took their places in their bunks, the number of empty bunks became apparent. Men put their faces in their hands and sobbed like children. Each of us wondered if our bunk would be empty at the end of the next mission. Fortunately, there was something we could always count on to help keep our sanity...late in the evening, long after the sun had gone down, a distant bugle could be heard playing "Taps." When that haunting, nostalgic song was played, all activity in the battalion area came to a screeching halt. Conversations would stop and men would sit back in their bunks, listening to what had to be the most poignant sound I have ever heard. Now, years later, as I look back on the horrors of that combat, I remember that unknown bugler who played "Taps" so late every night. It seemed that, if only for a few moments, we were assured that someone was up there, sending us renewed hope through those twenty-four simple notes. THE WORDS TO "TAPS" are: Day is Done, Gone the sun, From the lakes, from the hills, from the sky. All is well, Safely rest, God is nigh.
(SOURCE: Bill Scheibler, Vietnam veteran, Eden Prairie, Minnesota. Citation: Taps: Notes from a Nation’s Heart. Richard H. Schneider. New York: Harper Collins, 2002. p. 78.)
A testimony from a worker at ground zero on 9-11 testifies of God’s transforming power. I’m an excavation laborer, and a member of union local 731. Pick-and-shovel work is my trade. I live in New Jersey, but I’m a New York City native, Brooklyn born and bred. After the Towers collapsed, my city was hurting. When I heard they needed guys like me for search-and-rescue work at Ground Zero, I couldn’t get there fast enough. I’d seen the news coverage, but that didn’t prepare me for the reality. Down there it was like hell on earth. Fires burned out of control. Destroyed vehicles littered the streets. Everything was blanketed with dust; the air was filled with a choking stench. I soaked a bandanna with water before wrapping it around my head to cover my nose and mouth. I went to work wondering if I’d be able to get through this. Six firefighters and I entered World Trade Center building six, which had been flattened by Tower One. We took a smoke-filled stairway down into the garage levels, searching for survivors. There were no cries for help, no signs of life. We spray-painted orange Xs to indicate where we’d searched and to help us find our way back. After 12 hours of searching, we’d recovered three bodies. By then I was exhausted, but I couldn’t quit. “Think I’ll take a look over there,” I told the firemen, motioning toward the remains of the lobby atrium. Picking my way through the massive piles of debris, I peered into what had become a sort of grotto. Illuminated by the pale light of dawn were shapes . . . crosses. What? How did these get here? The largest was about 20 feet high. It must have weighed a couple of tons. In that little grotto I felt a strange sense of peace and stillness. I could almost hear God saying, The terrible thing done at this site was meant for evil. But I will turn it to good. Have faith. I am here. I fell to my knees in front of the largest cross. Tears came, and I couldn’t stop them. I cried like a baby. Finally I was able to pull myself together. I grabbed my gear and left the strange grotto to go back to search-and-rescue work. But first I spray-painted “God’s House” on the atrium ruins. Digging day after day at Ground Zero was the hardest work I’d ever done. Often I was so drained I felt I couldn’t go on. That’s when I’d go to God’s House. Standing there in front of that 20-foot-high steel-beam cross, I always felt my strength and spirit renewed. Word spread. The cross had the same healing effect on others too. Firemen, police, volunteers, grieving survivors, visiting dignitaries and clergy. They would walk into God’s House, see the cross and fall to their knees crying, like I had. Some people sang, some prayed. Everyone left changed. There are some who say that the cross I found is nothing more than steel. That it was just plain physics that broke the steel beam into the shape of a cross when it plunged through the roof of building six. But I believe differently. So does my friend Father Brian Jordan. He was a chaplain at Ground Zero, and is a priest at St. Francis of Assisi in midtown. When the time came for what was left of building six to be removed, God’s House faced demolition. Father Jordan talked to officials and persuaded them to save the cross. After it was removed from the site, ironworkers fixed the cross to a concrete base, then hoisted it up and mounted it atop a 40-foot foundation that had been a pedestrian walkway outside the World Trade Center. It stood high enough that the rescue workers who were down in the pit could see it whenever they lifted their heads. Ground Zero was not obviously a place of hope. But it was there that I learned we can always have faith. In fact, we must have faith if we are to go on. New life will rise from the ashes. I know that because the cross was a sign, a promise from God that he is with us even in the face of terrible evil and untold suffering. Especially then. SOURCE: by Frank Silecchia, Little Ferry, New Jersey. This article originally appeared in the September 2002 issue of Guideposts magazine. (http://www.dailyguideposts.com/newsletter/tribute/silecchia.asp)
When God sent Jesus to die on the cross it was His way of bringing hope from despair. It was His way of telling us that no matter how dark the night or how powerful the storm God can help us overcome it.
