Sermon Title: “A Retreat with Jesus”
Emphasis: The importance of personal spiritual retreats for growing believers
Written by: Rev. Michael R. Hodge – www.michaelrhodge.com
Introduction
As we open up God’s Word together, I invite you to begin in the book of Philippians. That’s where our journey will begin this evening as we consider this theme of “A Retreat with Jesus”.
Memories of Vacations
Regardless of how often or how elaborate your family vacations were, I imagine there are some special memories in your mind of times where you just got away with family. Maybe it was a camping trip, a beach vacation, or a trip to the mountains. Whatever the case, getting away with the family is truly a special time of bonding and sharing life together!
Well with that image in mind, I want us to use that idea of “getting away”…a retreat…to picture this theme of “A Retreat with Jesus”. I want us to consider how we ALL need to get away at times…but not just from our work schedules and the stress of daily life…but getting away for the purpose of spending time with Jesus.
And as we seek to do that, let’s begin with a passage of Scripture in Philippians chapter 1. As Paul was introducing that letter, he essentially gave them a preview of what was to come. He gave them a statement of anticipation of what was ahead of them. Let’s read that together…
Philippians 1:3-6, “I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, 4 always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy, 5 for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, 6 being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;”
We’re going to be focusing in on that last statement – “that he who has begun a good work in you will complete it…”
And I believe that one of key ways that God can accomplish that “completed work” in your life is through your willingness to get away and spend time with Him. And so as Paul gave that statement, it was a preview of what was to come in the lives of the Philippians.
Movie Clips: In 1913, a theater owner on Broadway decided to use a creative tool for getting folks to return to the next event. He created a trailer (a short preview) of a play that would soon be showing at his theater. It was a clever marketing idea – and in that moment he began an industry. You see, in those early days, when the previews first appeared, they were always inserted AFTER the movie. But before long the theater owners realized that people just weren’t willing to stick around after the movie, so they were moved to the beginning. And the goal of those previews (then and now) is to work hard to capture your attention – sometimes giving you just a snapshot and while at other times it seems that they have given you the whole movie.
Key: The preview seeks to build the anticipation of what is about to come.
In the same way, as Paul wrote to the believers at Philippi, he gave them a preview.
He said, “He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ”.
So if that is the build up…if that is what we are anticipating, then what I want us to consider in this message is how spending time with Jesus can affect that GOOD WORK that God is doing in our lives. If we believe that God is going to do a good work (the preview that Paul just gave us), then what are we doing to facilitate that good work in our lives?
To illustrate this, let’s consider several truths about getting away to spend time with Jesus.
Truth 1: A Retreat with Jesus: It is a Chance to Get Away
The first thing that I believe we will see in our various texts is that there are times when we just need to GET AWAY!
Listen to this first verse and then we’ll come back to this in a moment…
Luke 5:16, “So He Himself often withdrew into the wilderness and prayed.”
The pattern of Jesus was to withdraw…to get away…for a time of prayer.
Student Ministry: In my own days of student ministry…because I understood the value of just getting away and spending time with the Lord, this was always something that I wrote into the schedule when I would plan a student ministry retreat. At some point, in some place, we would get away and have a time set aside for just being with the Lord. But what I always discovered was that as I required students to follow that practice, God always blessed me as well. And one of those times wasn’t on a student trip…but on a mission trip. I’ve shared this with you before.
((You are encouraged to come up with an illustration that follows this theme and captures the personal nature of your own message)).
Peru Trip: In November of 2007, our missions team was working in Arequipa, Peru. On that trip I was spending time with the Lord (reading through Experiencing God). And as I read the words, “If you want to join God where He is working, you must be willing to make major adjustments in your life” I knew the adjustments that we had been avoiding as a family. And in that moment I knew that God was stirring our hearts to change our ministry. We had known that for quite some time. And so after nearly 7 years of ministry there at my former church, we chose to follow God in obedience – a journey that ultimately brought us to this place of serving here. And yet the STARTING POINT for that step of obedience was in a retreat (even though it was just on my knees in a hotel room). It was in THAT moment I was able to hear clearly God’s message for ME…as I took that chance to get away. And what we find in Scripture are examples where Jesus got away in order to be alone. And there are several reasons why Jesus got away to a place of solitude.
1. Jesus Looked for Chances to Get Away in order to Pray
Listen again to that passage I read a moment ago…
Luke 5:16, “So He Himself often withdrew into the wilderness and prayed.”
Is that the description of our habit? Do we OFTEN withdraw in order to pray?
Spiritual Retreat: As we talk about this idea of a “Retreat with Jesus” I’m not talking about going to the Cove in Asheville for a retreat weekend – although that’s a good option. What I’m talking about is just our willingness to pause throughout our day and our week to seek the Lord.
Key: It’s a willingness to PAUSE our routine and seek God’s plan.
Vacation Routine: One of the real joys of vacation is that it is a break from our routine. We get to do things that we normally do not do. Maybe it’s reading a book without interruption. Maybe it’s eating at places we normally don’t go to. Or maybe it’s just relaxing without a schedule weighing on us!
Point: Well really, as we consider this idea of a “Retreat with Jesus”…the point is that we realize we need something DIFFERENT in our walk with Christ from time to time. And in the same way, as the crowds pressed in on Jesus…He needed a change of pace. So He withdrew from the crowd in order to pray.
You see, I think far too many of us never look at the warning signs in our life and our relationship with the Lord. We ignore the warning light flashing saying, “Growing Cold! Wandering Away! Losing First Love!” And as we ignore those warning lights in our lives, we miss out on those opportunities to get away and be with the Lord as we pray.
Jesus looked for those opportunities – and He got away to pray
But the second reason that Jesus withdrew from the crowds was that…
2. Jesus Got Away in order to Remind us of His Purpose.
As we look over the gospels, we see a number of different reactions to Jesus – some who received Him openly as the Messiah – while others rejected Him and were appalled by His claims. But as the crowds would push in to see Jesus and even make their OWN claims…Jesus often withdrew. Why? Because He did not want to remain and give support to their false ideas of who He was. That’s what we find happening in John 6…
John 6:14-15, “Then those men, when they had seen the sign that Jesus did, said, “This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world.” Therefore when Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, He departed again to the mountain by Himself alone.”
They had THEIR idea of who Jesus was and they wouldn’t be stopped.
Segway: In 2001, there was a great deal of hype in the news and on the internet relating to a product that was going to revolutionize the world. The product was simply named, “It”. Because everyone involved in the project was required to sign a confidentiality agreement, there was never a leak of the actual product until the day of its unveiling. But the lead-up to the unveiling had people saying things like, “This is more revolutionary than the personal computer.” The inventor is a “genius”. So obviously there was a lot of build up. And with that build up came speculation. Some reasoned that it would be a different computer…a car…everyone had their own idea.
And when the unveiling revealed the Segway – the scooter type device that balances the rider…well there were mixed reviews. Some thought it was amazing…others were quite let down.
And in the same way as that hype led to all types of opinions, so did Jesus’ ministry and appearing. There were those that understood His purpose while others sought to crown Him as the new earthly KING.
And so Jesus got away from the crowd…and He reminded us of His purpose.
And as we consider that buzz word “purpose”…
The Purpose Driven Life has been one of the most successful books in history – selling 30 million copies – the most non-fiction hardcover books EVER SOLD! And the simple truth of the book is that our joy in Christ is found as we are reminded of our PURPOSE in Christ. In other words, it’s as we get to the core truths that we are most liberated.
In the same way, this was true in Jesus’ ministry. As people would try to pull the focus off of the core truths of who He is…He would pull away from those crowds. Why? So that we would be reminded of His purpose.
And the same can be true as we seek to GET AWAY and spend time with the Lord. It’s THEN that He can remind us of His purpose and get us away from the noise of the world around us.
And that “getting away” can be as simple as a short time of prayer – removed from the television or noise…or it can be as involved as a retreat focused on spiritual renewal. But what we find to be true in Jesus’ ministry is that it was in those times that he prayed…but also reminded us of His purpose.
But one more reason that Jesus withdrew from the crowds was that…
3. Jesus Withdrew in order to teach His disciples.
In the gospel of John, there is an interesting turn in the focus of the gospel narrative. As we come to chapter 11, the focus of the book turns much more intently on Jesus’ interactions with His disciples.
John 11:54, "Therefore Jesus no longer walked openly among the Jews, but went from there into the country near the wilderness, to a city called Ephraim, and there remained with His disciples.”
Why did Jesus not walk openly among the Jews at this point in His ministry? Well as we get towards the end of Jesus’ ministry, we see Him spending more and more time with His disciples. Rather than debate with the masses, in John 11 He withdrew in order to spend time with His closest circle. He withdrew so that He could teach His disciples.
Think about your own spiritual journey – and when you have grown the most in your walk with the Lord. It may have been in the midst of a tragedy or hard time in your life – but I would venture to say that many of you would tell of times when you were committed to be alone with the Lord on a regular basis. Because it was in those times that the Lord was able to TEACH you! And the same is true for each of us here tonight. Christ wants to teach us. God wants to teach us something new each and every day. And just as He saw something in those disciples that they could have never imagined, so God sees something beautiful in you…and He wants to grow that in you each day.
Jesus got away to pray. He got away to remind us of His purpose. And He got away to teach His disciples.
But beyond just teaching us in that time alone with the Lord…what I pray will be your experience as you spend time with the Lord is that you will live out those words of Paul in Philippians 1 – that God is beginning a good thing.
II. A Retreat with Jesus: A Chance for Renewal
As we spend time with the Lord on a daily basis, it is an opportunity for us to be renewed in our walk with Him. Now the psalms are filled with these kinds of expressions of faith, where the writers are renewed in their faith. And that’s the heart of Psalm 51:12…
"Restore to me the joy of Your salvation,
And uphold me by Your generous Spirit.”
In our home, we have a beautiful gift that was given to us about 7-8 years ago by one of our church members at our previous church. While he was alive, this man restored antique wood trunks. And one day he said, “I want you to come by the house and pick out a trunk”. Well that was quite an invitation, and when we arrived at his house we saw one beautiful trunk after another – each one the product of hours of work by his own hands. And he said, “Pick one out!” Well, we hated to do that because we didn’t know which one was his treasure and which ones he didn’t mind parting with. But he demanded it – and we picked out a beautiful wood trunk. But the key to that being a beautiful wood trunk following Jack’s restoration process is that it HAD TO HAVE BEEN a beautiful trunk in the first place. His restoration just brought it back to its original beauty.
And in the same way, restoration happens if and only if there is a relationship in the 1st place…and we can be restored to the joy of that relationship as we call on the Lord.
Intern Burnout: Wayne Cordeiro, in his book “The Divine Mentor”, shares of an intern that was ready to learn the ministry of the church and had set his heart to doing everything possible to thrive in his new ministry. In fact, he set himself to the job so intently that before long he was burning out and exhausted. Juggling another job and this new responsibility was more than he thought it was going to be. So, tired and ready to throw in the towel he walked into the pastor’s office and said, “I can’t keep doing this. I’m burnt out and exhausted and I just don’t know if the ministry is for me.”
In a moment of wisdom, the pastor looked at the young intern and asked, “Have you been doing your devotions this week?”
The intern was rather flustered by the response. “What does that have to do with this? I’m working so much I don’t have time for anything!”
So the pastor replied, “I want you to promise me this – take 2 weeks and commit to spending time with the Lord. In fact, don’t come in unless you’ve spent that time with God. And if at the end of that 2 weeks you still want out of the ministry, I’ll help you find another position.”
The intern agreed and the pastor did not hear of the conversation again for 2 weeks. At the end of the 2 week period he expected the boy to come right back to his office. So he went looking for him. When he found him setting up for an event, he asked him, “Well, are you in or out?” To which the boy replied, “What are you talking about, I love this job!”
Point: You see, as that young ministry intern was trying to do it in his OWN strength, he failed. But as he sought the Lord day by day, God strengthened him for the task! And often a retreat with Jesus is just that…it’s a chance for renewal and strength. God will revive our spirit and we’ll find joy once again in Him!
And along the lines of renewal and strength…
In 1967, the Florida Gators had a drink that the other team – the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets did not have – a drink that would later be called “Gatorade”. Following the game the Georgia Tech coach joked when asked what made the difference in the game. He said, “They had Gatorade, we didn’t.”
In the same way, there are all types of things that we can look to in order to pump life into our faith and reinvigorate our walk with Christ. We can try church attendance, we can hope for new joy as we enter into another new study, or even another special event. But if we are not spending time ONE on ONE with the Lord…then none of that will satisfy.
In fact, listen to these words given to Joshua as the secret to his strength. You probably know this passage well. It was spoken to Joshua as he was to enter the land long promised to God’s people…
Joshua 1:8, “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.”
Two Keys: I find two keys in Joshua 1:8 – reading AND doing. If we approach our time with the Lord as if it’s “punching a clock” where we read from the Bible or a devotional material…and we quickly forget what we have read – well that doesn’t serve much of a purpose does it? God told Joshua that the key to his renewal would be hearing and doing.
And so as we seek a “retreat with Jesus” each and every day – it is a chance for renewal.
Listen to these words in James…
James 1:5-6, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.”
James presents the Lord as if He is an unending well to which we can go and draw wisdom from for our lives.
A retreat with Jesus. As we look ahead to the home stretch of a school year…we have the opportunity to use that image to remind us that we ALL need to take times to “retreat” and be with the Lord. It’s something that was prevalent in His ministry on earth…and it can be prevalent in our lives as well – as we draw close to Him day by day.
