OUR NEW YEARS RESOLUTIONS
I welcome all of you to our first Sunday of 2013 as we prepare for the New Year. For many, the New Year is a time of reflection on the past year and a time to make resolutions for the coming year. It’s a time to look back at things that worked in your life or perhaps did not work so well and would like to make it better in 2013.
Last week we looked at the importance of having a Christ like vision for the coming year. Of all the goals that you can set forth and of all the ideas that you can dream about, there is nothing greater than having a vision of Christ and His eternal glory.
And last week we looked at the visions God desires for us to have in our lives; visions that have the power to impact our lives and eternity.
Today, I want to move onto the next step. Visions are great to have, and having a vision of the glory of Christ can inspire us and motivate us, but as great as visions are, visions by themselves will not fulfill the purpose and plan of God in your life. Your vision of God’s greatness and glory means nothing, if you do not put it to use for the King, and His kingdom. So in addition to the inspiring visions of God’s love and presence, there must also be commitment and resolutions to live out those visions. For these visions of Christ’s glory to impact your life and eternity it is very important that we take the next step and add to our visions, resolutions. From visions to resolutions…
So today, since this is the first Sunday of the New Year, I want us to focus our attention to the idea of New Year’s resolutions.
How many of you made some sort of resolution for the coming year? We can all come up with numerous ideas for a personal New Year’s Resolution. But today, I want to take this moment for us to focus on resolutions that I believe will first, impact our lives and our families, and second will impact eternity. These are the kind of resolutions that I believe are worth making and keeping.
It is my hope that after hearing this message that you will choose to make resolutions in your life that will have a lifelong impact your life and your future, because I believe the resolutions that I am about to lay out before you will add God’s purpose and favor into your life.
Luke 4:16 He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. And he stood up to read. 17 The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: 18 "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." 20 Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him, 21 and he began by saying to them, "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing." (NIV)
THE POWER OF RESOLUTIONS
Look back at verse 19, which says, “to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."
Wouldn’t it be awesome if this could be the year of the Lord’s favor for our lives?
The word favor comes from the Greek word “charitoo” (khar-ee-to-o) which means to be surrounded by God’s favor or grace and to honor with blessings. The point is that when you are resolved in your heart to let nothing stand in the way of your obedience and trust in the Lord, He promises to bless us with the favor of His presence and to never forsake us.
The first thing we need to realize is the power of a making a resolution. By definition, a resolution is the firm determination to accomplish a purpose by taking a course of action. It is the resolve to never give up, to never quit, and the determination to stop at nothing to fulfill your God given purpose in life.
There are many kinds of resolutions we could make, but what I want to do this morning is give you some Biblical resolutions that would greatly impact your life for eternity.
FIRST, TRUST GOD
The first resolution that is so important for this coming year is found in Proverbs 3:5.
Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. 7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil. 8 This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones. (NIV)
One of the most powerful resolutions that will greatly impact your future and bring about the favor of God is for you to develop an unshakable trust in God.
This is vitally important. Believers say they know God, they believe in God, but the real point is do you trust God.
Solomon said “trust in the LORD with all your heart…
Do not trust in your finances
Do not trust in your abilities or your career
Do not trust in your understanding
But do trust in the Lord, and trust in Him and only in Him with all of your heart
If you are to have eternal success and experience the favor of God in your life, the first resolution is to develop your trust of God.
This is a very important point that cannot be left out.
Solomon said, Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.
Trusting in the Lord is to trust Him even when you do not understand. In everything you do, acknowledge Him by trusting Him, and when you do, God says He will make your paths straight. He did not say your path (life) would be easy. He said when you are resolved in your heart to trust Him, your paths (your life) will be straight; meaning He will make sure you know you are headed in the right direction.
Now, look at verse 8. God says when you trust in Him with all of your heart, He will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones. (Verse 8)
Very simply that means because you have made a resolution in your heart to trust in Him, He will give you His peace and assurance that He is with you.
Now in closing this point, we sometimes get the idea that because we trust God nothing bad is supposed to ever happen to us. That everything will be full of peace and wonderful.
When you decide to trust God, the world, the flesh, and the devil will be determined to stop you. When you make a resolution to trust God with your life and your future, you will still encounter obstacles and trials and disappointments. But the difference is when you trust God and you are determined in your heart to continue trusting Him, God will bring you through and pour out on you His favor.
Job is a great example.
Job encountered terrible trials and hardships and yet during that dark time, Job said
Job 13:15 Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him. (NKJV)
Job said I am resolved in my heart that even if God killed me, I will still trust Him. That’s real trust.
When it was all over, God gave Job His double blessing and favor.
Again, we see that Jesus trusted in God the Father so much that He willingly suffered the pain of the cross because He trusted God to bring glory and purpose to it.
Listen, there may be many reasons for what is happening in your life, but I assure you that the most important move you can make right now is to be resolved in your heart to trust God and to believe He has a greater purpose.
SECOND, BE RESOLVED IN YOUR HEART TO DO THE WILL OF GOD
In addition to trusting God, I encourage you to make a resolution to seek, know and do the will of God.
Romans 12:2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will. (NIV)
There are many great and wonderful things you could do with your life, but there is nothing greater or more important than to do the will of God.
Perhaps you say, I don’t know God’s will for my life. Let’s make this very simple. What do you already know for your life is the will of God? For example, from the last scripture we just read, you know it is God’s will that you trust Him.
You know it is God’s will that you pray, confess your sins, that you follow Him, that you give Him thanks and glory, and etc. If you will do what you already know is God’s will, He will reward your efforts by revealing to you other parts of His will. But first, you must show Him you are willing to do the small things and then He will show you the bigger and greater things.
THIRD, BE RESOLVED TO KNOW MORE OF GOD’S WORD
A third resolution that has the potential to bless your life and bring God’s favor is to know God’s word. Jesus said,
Luke 11:28 "Blessed are those who hear the word of God and obey it." (NIV)
I realize that for some of you, reading anything, especially the Bible is a challenge. However, I encourage you to make a resolution to at least read the four gospels. If you spend about 7 minutes a day, and read one chapter, you can read all four gospels in less than 3 months. If you read ½ chapter a day, you could read the four gospels in less than 6 months.
Reading God’s word will give you spiritual insight, direction, and godly wisdom.
God’s word speaks with eternal truth and gives the answers for eternal life. When you speak God’s word in Jesus name, Satan has to flee and the demons of hell tremble in terror.
God’s word brings light into our darkness.
God’s word reveals the His divine will and purpose.
God’s word gives direction when the way seems lost.
For those who hear what the Holy Spirit says through God’s word and obeys will experience God’s blessings and favor.
The more of God’s word you read and grow to know, the deeper your trust will grow and the greater your understanding will be of God and His will.
FOURTH, BE RESOLVED TO KNOW THE KING AND HIS KINGDOM
Matthew 6:33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. (NIV)
Jesus said there is an eternal kingdom and since there to be a kingdom, there must also be an eternal King. However, to be a member of His kingdom, you must first be granted access by the King. Only those who are members of the kingdom will enter the glory of heaven and see the King.
The question is, are you a member of the kingdom? If you die without securing your
membership in Christ’s kingdom, you will not ever see the glory of heaven, which is so wonderful that it is beyond the ability of the human mind to understand.
How do you become a member of the Kingdom? John 3:16 ff gives us the answer.
John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son. (NIV)
The key word in these verses is the word believes. The word believe, is describing an attitude of the heart that says I believe in Jesus Christ as the only way of salvation and I would rather die than to deny Jesus Christ as Savior.
Here’s the point; what you believe about Jesus Christ will determine your entrance in His eternal kingdom of heaven.
Attending church every Sunday will not grant you entrance past the Gates of Pearl into the eternal Kingdom of the King. In order to enter His kingdom, your name must be written in His book called the Book of Life. If your name is not in that book, you do not get in. What is the Book of Life?
Philippians 4:3 And I urge you also, true companion, help these women who labored with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the Book of Life. (NKJV)
You can see here that having your name in the Book of Life is very important.
Revelation 13:8 All who dwell on the earth will worship him, (The Antichrist) whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. (NKJV)
Revelation 20:12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. 14 Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 15 If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. NIV
The lake of fire, what we call hell is a place of immense and horrific suffering for all who reject the Name of Jesus as their Savior.
What must you do to avoid this place and to have your name written in the Book of Life?
Having your name in the eternal Book of Life is determined by what you believe.
John 3:36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him." (NIV)
What do you believe about Jesus Christ?
Do you believe He is the Son of God?
Do you believe He is the only way of Salvation?
Do you believe in Him so strongly that you are willing to change how you live your life and follow Him?
Do you believe in Him so strongly that you will let nothing stand in the way of giving Him your life so that He can write your name in the book of Life?
There are many who know the name of Jesus, who can tell you about Jesus, and understand many things about Jesus, but they never believed in Jesus to the point they allowed Him to change their life.
The kingdom of Jesus will endure forever, and the only way for you to be a part of his kingdom is to believe in the king.
The main point is this; you cannot get into the kingdom if you don’t believe in the King.
I encourage you to be resolved to know the King, and to be a part of His kingdom.
IN CLOSING, BE RESOLVED TO PREPARE FOR THE KING’S RETURN
Revelation 22:12 Jesus said "Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done. (NIV)
The worst thing you could do is to be unprepared for the return of the King. There are no words strong enough that I can use to convey to you the seriousness of being prepared for Christ coming of His church in the rapture. The consequences of not being prepared for His coming will be serious and severe.
Jesus said several times; do not be caught sleeping and unaware. The New Testament gives numerous warnings of the grave, eternal danger of not being prepared for the return of King.
Let me just put it to you in plain terms; King Jesus will return in your lifetime, whether you are ready or not.
How do I know that? There are things happening right now that the Bible said would be clear warning signs that He is coming, and that His coming would be for many like
a thief in the night.
Therefore, I say to you, in the name of the Lord, to be resolved in your heart to be
ready and prepared for the soon return of the King.
HE IS COMING!
These are a few of the many resolutions we could make. Today, I encourage you to be resolved in your heart to…
Trust in the Lord with all of your heart
To know and do the will of God
To know more of God’s Word
To know the King and be a part of His kingdom
To prepare for the King’s return
