Who May Come to the Lord? Psalm 24:1-5NLT
The story is told of a father of five children who came home with a toy. He summoned his children and asked which of them should be given the present. "Who is the most obedient one here? Who never talks back to Mom and does everything that Mom says to do?" He inquired. There were a few seconds of silence, and then all of the children said in one accord: "You play with it Daddy!"
The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it. The world and all its people belong to him. 2 For he laid the earth’s foundation on the seas and built it on the ocean depths.
3 Who may climb the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? 4 Only those whose hands and hearts are pure,who do not worship idols and never tell lies. 5 They will receive the Lord’s blessing and have a right relationship with God their savior.
Verse 1, puts everything and everyone in prospective. 1)TM God claims Earth and everything in it, God claims World and all who live on it. Every person on earth belong’s to the Lord- Wow. The atheists, the back-slider and the womanizer- everyone.
Here’s the question: Verse 3-4TM, Who can climb Mount God? Who can scale the holy north-face? Only the clean-handed, only the pure-hearted; Men who won't cheat, women who won't seduce.
Men, if you seek God, He will surly seek you!
Today, I hope most men in here learned many valuable lessons from your father’s or grandfather. I would like to share several lessons I’ve learned from my day- Charles H. Strickland.
Stay close to the church (His body) for worship, word and fellowship.
Psalm 84:10-11NKJ For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God Than dwell in the tents of wickedness.
11 For the Lord God is a sun and shield;The Lord will give grace and glory; No good thing will He withhold From those who walk uprightly.
Always bless your pastor. (Dad and mom, always did special things for their pastor’s.)
1 Timothy 5:17-18NKJ Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the word and doctrine. 18 For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain,” and, “The laborer is worthy of his wages.”
Tithe- No matter where you’re at- keep the first fruit for God.
Haggai 1: 5-7NKJ Now therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts: “Consider your ways! 6 “You have sown much, and bring in little;You eat, but do not have enough; You drink, but you are not filled with drink; You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm; And he who earns wages, Earns wages to put into a bag with holes.” 7 Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Consider your ways!
Never make rash, knee-jerk decisions when the pressure is on. Relax and roll the care of it over on God.
1 Peter 5:6-7NKJ Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, 7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.
Always tell the truth. (There is no such thing as a white lie.)
Revelation 21: 7-8NKJ He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. 8 But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”
“Never borrow money unless it’s for a necessity- do without.”
Proverbs 22:7NKJ The rich rules over the poor, And the borrower is servant to the lender.
“Love people, and let them live their lives. We should not judge, and its not our place to correct them.”
1 Corinthians13: 4-7NLT Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud 5 or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. 6 It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. 7 Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.
Lucille Ball, shortly before her death, did a remarkable TV interview with Merv Griffin. He asked her a very serious and pointed question: "Lucille, you've lived a long time on this earth and you are a wise person. What's happened to our country? What's wrong with our children? Why are our families falling apart? What's missing?" Lucille Ball answered without hesitation: "Papa's missing. Things are falling apart because Papa's gone. If Papa were here he would fix it."
The Top 10 Things You’ll Never Hear a Dad Say: 10. "Well, how ‘bout that? I’m lost! Looks like we’ll have to stop and ask for directions." 9. "You know Pumpkin, now that you’re thirteen, you’ll be ready for un-chaperoned car dates. Won’t that be fun?" 8. "I noticed that all your friends have a certain hostile attitude. I like that." 7. "Here’s a credit card and the keys to my new car. Go crazy!!!" 6. "What do you mean you wanna play football? Figure skating is not good enough for you, son?" 5. "Your Mother and I are going away for the weekend. You might want to consider throwing a party." 4. "Well, I don’t know what’s wrong with your car. Probably one of those doo-hickey thingies—ya know—that makes it run or something. Just have it towed to a mechanic and pay whatever he asks." 3. "No son of mine is going to live under this roof without an earring. Now quit your belly-aching and let’s go to the mall." 2. "Whaddya wanna go and get a job for? I make plenty of money for you to spend." And the number one thing you’ll never hear a dad say: 1. "What do I want for Father’s Day? Aahh—don’t worry about that. It’s no big deal." (actually they might say this, but they don’t mean it).
Benediction.
