Has God passed His own expiry date? Is religion just for weak people? Is civilization passed the time for us to believe in God? Today we will learn about secularism. What it means to be a Godly person in a secular world.
Philippians 3:14-15
14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. 15 Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you.
Example
Start by extending a construction measuring tape and compare the length to years. Have go to 90 years and then press the safety pin to roll it back. One day your life will roll backwards before your eyes and you will understand how small you are. We try to ignore death and our prejudice about God and religion may hinder us to pass to the next level of existence. You cannot cheat death. One day just like the measuring tape rolled quickly to the inside you will see a flashback of events that marked your existence and things will finally make sense.
This passage of Scripture clearly indicates that God reveals things to the "mature". I believe is not speaking of age but of spiritual maturity. You can only be mature in something that you experienced. As we come to Church this morning we have people here with different levels of Spiritual growth. Some are mature and some are not.
Modern philosophy tries to deny the very existence of God. Millions of people rely on experimentation and since they have never experienced God it is impossible for them to understand that we are really small and that God is immense. I was able to experience God because of near-death experience. God used this moment of my existence to reveal Himself to me in a personal and intimate way. When I resurrected from my brief passage to the other side I realized that I am just small, tiny like a grain of sand in the ocean but that inspire of that God cared for me enough to give me attention. His love is beyond comprehension.
How can we find God? The answer is easy! You just need to receive Him
John 1:10-12
10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,
This said I want to tell you two easy things we have to do in order to receive God. Just give some attention to this message because it can radically change your life. God is real and he will reveal himself to all who receive him.
Let me just give you the translation of the word "receive". The original greek word "paralambanō"; means ; to receive near, i.e. associate with oneself (in any familiar or intimate act or relation); by analogy, to assume an office; figuratively, to learn: — receive, take (unto, with).
To receive Jesus doesn't mean that you are joining a church, a religion or a doctrine. To receive him means that you decide to voluntarily associate, become familiar and learn from Jesus Christ Himself. In order to do so let me give you two very simple steps in that direction.
1. Do not live in anger
Anger is the attitude we allow to surface in our lives from not getting something that we want or, more important, something that we think we deserve.
We live in Canada so we want it all and we want it now! People think that they deserve a lot of things in life. People will come to you and say "you deserve a break today!" In other words a break is owed to you. Anger is initiated when we don't get what we want or something that we think we deserve. The process is initiated when someone says something like "you deserve a break today". You think about it and you get mad because you don't get what you think you deserve.
Anger is the emotion that we experience when we feel that somebody owes us something.
You get a job and you have a position and suddenly you think you deserve a promotion and you become angry because you don't get your promotion. Suddenly you start to think bad things about your boss or your manager because you think they owe you this. You are working so hard and the promotion doesn't come and now anger rises up. Anger is a part of life and we will all get to feel it.
Some of you went through hard situations and you got a divorce because your husband was cheating on you. You feel violated because your husband took the best days of your life and because you feel betrayed and thinking that something was stollen from you. You were betrayed and now you start to feel really angry because he owes you. Most people walk through life with anger because they grew in a home where the father was taken away from the house or the mother left to live with another man and they feel their parents owe them something.
Anger will come when you feel that people owe you something. We are not mistreated in life just one time but this will happen multiple times and we are constantly mistreated. If we are not careful we will get to live this kind of angry life and we start to treat others around us in anger. If you allow yourself to live in anger this will begin to spill out and you will mistreat other people around you including the people you love. Why? Because we are angry because we constantly feel that people owes us something.
In Church we will have also angry people because they feel that they deserve attention or position. They feel that they are so important that they have to be publicly honored and praised and suddenly if they loose positions of authority they will become angry with the Church or angry with the pastor because they feel like the leaders owe them something.
Matthew 6:9-16
9 Pray then like this: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.
10 Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread,
12 and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
14 For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, 15 but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
Forgiveness is the way out of anger. Forgiveness is the attitude of cancelling the debt to someone. If you feel that someone owes you something you need to cancel that debt. And by the way if you don't do it say goodbye to your salvation because your Father in heaven will not forgive you if you constantly live in anger. Without forgiveness salvation is lost.
We will be angry with people, with life, with ourselves and even with God. You know what sometimes God gets also angry. The Bible doesn't say "You shall not be angry" however it clearly states that you need to get over it and the only way to do it is to practice forgiveness in your every day life. If we walk around telling people how much you are hurt with someone please grow up and learn how to apply the principles of the Bible to your personal life.
We need to be doers of the Word!
2 Corinthians 3:6
6 who has made us competent to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.
If you know the Bible but you do not apply these principles to your life then you have a covenant that kills. The spirit of religion keeps millions of people in bondage because many people feel that they know the word of God but in fact they don't know God. They speak of the spirit but they don't live in the Spirit. They talk about prayer but they don't pray. They talk about miracles but they don't have an ever present God that is constantly revealing Himself through signs and wonders.
2. Learn how to be grateful
Many times we fail to see the things that are right in from of our eyes. Studies ay that we talk to ourselves about 30,000 times a day. This is called meditating. When we worry we meditate in reverse. If you go through the day worrying about your future, worrying about your finances or about your family you will cause your thoughts to be angry and fearful, negative and discouraged. You can have control over your own thoughts and control what you think about life. Fear will cause you to be stressed out and if you will not be able to find God in your circumstances.
Philippians 4:8-9
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. 9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.
If you train your mind to meditate in the things that are honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable and excellent you have a promise that the God of peace will be with you. If things are not of good report don't waste your time thinking about it.
Get your mind going in the right direction. We may not know where the future goes but we know the one who holds the future. We need to put our trust in God and as we meditate in that we will not have fear but we will rejoice in faith. Think about the things that are worthy of praise.
I'm not saying that we will not worry about things because we will but we cannot dwell in a state of mind that separates us from God but we need to have an attitude of praise and gratitude and choose to think and meditate in those things that cause the God of peace to be with us.
Conclusion
John 1:10-12
10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,
The Maker of the World is unknown to his own creation to the point that some think that the simple idea of God is old fashioned and that a relationship with him is either irrational, impossible or out of date.
Today I want to challenge you to do a simple step in His direction by changing two things in your daily behaviour.
1. Don't be angry - forgive
2. Be grateful - Meditate in things that are worthy of praise
Remember that the day will come when the movie of your life will come before your eyes just like that measuring tape rolls back to itself. Your life should have a meaning when you pass away from this world and there is no second chance to make things right.
2 Corinthians 13:11
11 Finally, brothers, rejoice. Aim for restoration, comfort one another, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you.
