Introduction
Are you ready for a baseball trivia question? Who is Clint Courtney? If you’re unsure, don’t bother requesting the answer from Cooperstown, N.Y. Clint never came close to making it into the Baseball Hall of Fame. In fact, it’s very doubtful that his picture appeared on any bubble gum cards. This guy wasn’t a legend in his own time -- not even in his own mind. He was only a memory maker for his family, and a few die-hard fans who were inspired by his tremendous fortitude. Clint played catcher for the Baltimore Orioles in the 1950s. During his career he earned the nickname of Scrap Iron, implying that he was hard, weathered, and tough. Old Scrap broke no records -- only bones. He had little power or speed on the base paths. As for grace and style, he made the easiest play look rather difficult. But armed with mitt and mask, Scrap Iron never flinched from any challenge.
Batters often missed the ball and caught his shin. Their foul tips nipped his elbow. Runners fiercely plowed into him, spikes first, as he defended home plate. Though often doubled over in agony, and flattened in a heap of dust, Clint Courtney never quit. Invariably, he’d slowly get up, shake off the dust, punch the pocket of his mitt once, twice, and nod to his pitcher to throw another one. The game would go on and Courtney with it -- scarred, bruised, clutching his arm in pain, but determined to continue. He resembled a POW with tape, splints, braces, and other kinds of paraphernalia that wounded people wear. Some made fun of him -- calling him a masochist. Insane. Others remember him as a true champion.[i]
There are times when we just want to quit, I mean we just do not have the energy to take one more step, breath one more breath, do one more job for the Lord. We realize that the job is too much for us. We need to take time to be encouraged by the Lord.
Paul’s Admonition
When we look at the life of Paul we realize that he was a type A personality, the driven to succeeded at all cost kind. While most just evangelized around their local church, Paul was out sailing the known world on three different missionary journeys and he was persecuted. Listen to his own description of what happened to him:
2 Corinthians 11:21-29
I speak as concerning reproach, as though we had been weak. Howbeit whereinsoever any is bold, (I speak foolishly,) I am bold also. 22 Are they Hebrews? so am I. Are they Israelites? so am I. Are they the seed of Abraham? so am I. 23 Are they ministers of Christ? (I speak as a fool) I am more; in labours more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft. 24 Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. 25 Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep; 26 In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; 27 In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness. 28 Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches. 29 Who is weak, and I am not weak? who is offended, and I burn not?
All that Paul had been through and yes it made him weak, and angry, and offended. It is nice to know he is human. Preachers, pastors, missionaries, and Bible teachers are not some “super Christian” but men called by God to do a job. But Paul gives us advice on being weary under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he writes:
Gal 6:6-9
Let him that is taught in the word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things. 7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. 8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. 9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.
-Well doing:
Well-NT:2570 kalos (kal-os’); of uncertain affinity; properly, beautiful, but chiefly (figuratively) good (literally or morally), i.e. valuable or virtuous (for appearance or use, and thus distinguished from NT:18, which is properly intrinsic): KJV - better, fair, good (-ly), honest, meet, well, worthy.[ii]
Doing-NT:4160 poieo (poy-eh’-o); apparently a prolonged form of an obsolete primary; to make or do (in a very wide application, more or less direct): KJV - abide, agree, appoint, avenge, band together, be, bear, bewray, bring (forth), cast out, cause, commit, content, continue, deal, without any delay, (would) do (-ing), execute, exercise, fulfil, gain, give, have, hold, journeying, keep, lay wait, lighten the ship, make, mean, none of these things move me, observe, ordain, perform, provide, have purged, purpose, put, raising up, secure, shew, shoot out, spend, take, tarry, transgress the law, work, yield. Compare NT:4238.[iii]
-So the question is: Are we being wearied in well doing. If we are not doing well then this message does not apply. If that is your situation, where you are walking after the flesh, and walking after the flesh will weary you, just look at the words of David:
O LORD, rebuke me not in thy wrath: neither chasten me in thy hot displeasure. For thine arrows stick fast in me, and thy hand presseth me sore. There is no soundness in my flesh because of thine anger; neither is there any rest in my bones because of my sin. For mine iniquities are gone over mine head: as an heavy burden they are too heavy for me. My wounds stink and are corrupt because of my foolishness. I am troubled; I am bowed down greatly; I go mourning all the day long. For my loins are filled with a loathsome disease: and there is no soundness in my flesh. I am feeble and sore broken: I have roared by reason of the disquietness of my heart. (Psalms 38:1-8)
-At this point we do not need this message, we need repentance.
Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner, that ye might receive damage by us in nothing. For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death. (2 Corinthians 7:9-10)
Now this is more than being sorry. If I leave my church and want to go to Jacksonville, and go north towards Yulee, I can keep telling myself I need to go to Jacksonville, but unless I stop and turn my car around I will wind up in North Florida (aka Georgia) and never get to Jacksonville. Once I turn the car around and then make up the lost ground then I will eventually get to Jacksonville.
So now it is with repentance. We need to turn from our sinful ways and do right.
We will reap if we do not faint. We are going to face trials and tribulations that weaken us, exhaust us, we will need the strength of the Lord.
Nehemiah’s Advice
Nehemiah was an executive type, a cup bearer to the king. A good gig if you could get it, as long as nobody was trying to kill the king. You ate well (off the king’s own plate) and if you lived, the king then ate. But he found out about the walls of Jerusalem being in disrepair and burned and it burdened him. Now he was not the type to bring his personal troubles to work, but this was too much for him to bear and the usually professional, cheerful, pleasant Nehemiah was downtrodden, in other words he looked troubled. And the king noticed. And sent him to Jerusalem to build up the walls and he faced many obstacles and resistance from the people living there. Here is the advice from Nehemiah:
Nehemiah 8:8-12
So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading. 9 And Nehemiah, which is the Tirshatha, and Ezra the priest the scribe, and the Levites that taught the people, said unto all the people, This day is holy unto the LORD your God; mourn not, nor weep. For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the law. 10 Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength. 11 So the Levites stilled all the people, saying, Hold your peace, for the day is holy; neither be ye grieved. 12 And all the people went their way to eat, and to drink, and to send portions, and to make great mirth, because they had understood the words that were declared unto them.
-The conviction comes from the Word of God. If we are going to have strength we need to be in the Bible and studying it, and applying it to our lives, living holy, sanctified, lives. What starts out with conviction ends with joy.
-We need to realize each day is holy unto the Lord and live it that way.
-It is OK to enjoy what God has blessed you with, and we need to share what we have with those who do not.
-The joy of the Lord is our strength. This joy is given by God and is part of the fruit of the spirit. You cannot say the devil stole my joy. He is not strong enough to take from you what God has given but you can give it away to him. And the joy from God in this is a clam delight.
-Additional note on Joy: Jesus gives this to us let us read what He says on joy:
John 15:9-11
As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love. 10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love.11 These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.
So from Jesus we learn that to keep the joy which is our strength we need to continue in the Love of Jesus, we need to be obedient to the laws of God. These are the keys to keeping the joy Jesus wants us to keep in our lives. And the joy of the Lord is our strength.
Isaiah’s Advisement
We know Isaiah as the Old Testament prophet who wrote the longest book of prophecy in the Bible, 66 chapters. He prophesied good kings, and he prophesied under bad kings. And I guess giving messages to kings who could kill you and did not want your message could have been wearing to him, but God gave advice to Isaiah also:
Isa 40:28-31
Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. 29 He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. 30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: 31 But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
Remember who we serve: the omnipotent one, the Lord God of creation who never gets tired or weary.
-Realize He is the source of our strength
-When all others fail and fall but God is our strength
-There are times we need to wait. Be still and know that I am God.
-Mount up: when the eagle faces the troubles in life, he does not weary himself fighting the battle but turns into the wind, spreads his wings and using the wind from the storm soars up over the clouds and flies in the warmth of the sun above. Let us let our troubles not cause us to turn from God but to turn to God.
-Our strength being from God will allow us to run the race that is set before us, to walk the walk of faith.
Wrap Up
So here we are, where are you today? Are you saved? If not, why not? What in Hell could you want? Do you need to repent and turn back to God? Why not use the alter now. Maybe you are just weary in well doing. Then take time to rest and refresh yourself in the Lord, we need to get ready, there is a battle coming.
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[i] Jon Johnston, Courage - You Can Stand Strong in the Face of Fear, 1990, SP Publications, pp. 35-36. From Sermon Illustrations, http://www.sermonillustrations.com/a-z/p/perseverance.htm.
[ii] Biblesoft’s New Exhaustive Strong’s Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.
[iii] Biblesoft’s New Exhaustive Strong’s Numbers and Concordance with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright © 1994, 2003 Biblesoft, Inc. and International Bible Translators, Inc.
