1. Paternoster
A former soldier tells of being stationed in Frankfurt, Germany. When he had to go to the HQ, located in the Abrams Building, he had two options to go upstairs. He could take the stairs or the "Paternoster." This was an unusual elevator which had no doors, only an opening; and it never stopped. A person would have to hop on and off at just the right times. "Paternoster" is Latin for "Our Father." Our Father is another way that some people refer to the Lord's (Disciples') Prayer. He surmised that to ride that elevator required much prayer!
2. Matthew 6.9-10
3. Graduation Speech
I read about a disturbing graduation speech. The speaker was the valedictorian. He stood up to the podium and he thanked his father, which sounded good -- at first.
"My father taught me an important lesson," the young man said. "He told me throughout my entire life that I am the most important person in the world." Over and over through his speech, he talked about how true it was that he was the most important person in the world.
He looked out at his fellow students and told them, "Don't ever think that there is anyone more important than you. Do what you want to do, not what other people want. Your happiness is all that matters."
This is the destructive attitude in our society today -- ME, ME, ME! Criminal behavior; Political Corruption; Rudeness; Destruction of Marriages;
4. The Battle is this: Is it GOD or ME? The tendency is ME; the Necessity is God!
I. Recognizing the Will of God
A. A Reminder of the Place of God -- "King of the Universe"
1. Supernatural and All-Powerful Aspects -- Psalm 139.7-8
7 Whither shall I go from thy Spirit?
Or whither shall I flee from thy presence?
8 If I ascend to heaven, thou art there!
If I make my bed in Sheol, thou art there!
5 Who is like the LORD our God,
who is seated on high,
6 who looks far down
upon the heavens and the earth? Psalm 113.5-6
2. Unknown Concept to Pagans
a. A god for every occasion -- rain; fertility; lightning; sun; wind; fire; seas; hills; valleys
b. BenHadad -- 1 Kings 20.23-25
23 And the servants of the king of Syria said to him, "Their gods are gods of the hills, and so they were stronger than we; but let us fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they. 24 And do this: remove the kings, each from his post, and put commanders in their places; 25 and muster an army like the army that you have lost, horse for horse, and chariot for chariot; then we will fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they." And he hearkened to their voice, and did so.
1) Lost to Hebrews -- thought it was because their God was God of the hills
2) Solution: Fight in the Plain
B. A Reminder of the Plans of God
"If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans." He tells us his.
1. Reason to study scripture -- Psalm 40.8
I delight to do thy will, O my God; thy law is within my heart."
Teach me to do thy will, for thou art my God! Let thy good spirit lead me on a level path! Psalm 143.10
2. Purpose -- to DO, not just to KNOW -- James 1.22
Rabbi Gamliel Ben Y'Hudah (ca 220 AD) -- "Do his will as if it is your will."
Two buckets met at a well one day. One bucket had a big smile on its face. The other had a big frown. "Why are you frowning?" asked the happy bucket. "Oh, no matter how full I am when I leave the well, I always return empty," complained the sad bucket.
"And why are you always smiling?" asked the sad bucket. "No matter how empty I am when I come to the well, I always leave full."
II. Resisting the Will of Man
A. Resisting God's Will by:
1. The Evil Inclination -- Romans 7.21-25 (wretched man)
21 So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. 22 For I delight in the law of God, in my inmost self, 23 but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin which dwells in my members. 24 Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I of myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.
Most of you have seen the wonderful images from the Hubble Space Telescope. From the far reaches of space, we're able to see God's most breathtaking creations. Do you remember that in the beginning the Hubble Space Telescope was not the wonderful machine that it is today. After lots of excitement, the telescope was launched several years ago and the first images were blurry. There was a flaw in the mirror. It was a terrible disappointment. That problem was later corrected, but at the time there was a joke making the rounds that said the only thing NASA learned from the Hubble Telescope was to never name a project that rhymed with "trouble." It was a huge embarrassment.
The self-centered life is just like the early years of the Hubble Space Telescope. It makes everything out of focus so that you don't see truth and reality -- you just see a blurry image of it.
The self-centered life makes you think that you are the most important thing in the universe -- but you're not.
2. Evil Entanglements (not of our choosing necessarily)
a. Oppressive governments/evil leaders of companies, etc.
b. Egypt; Assyria; Babylon; Greeks; Romans; Nazis; USA?
B. The Result of Resisting God's Will
1. Destruction -- Sodom and Gomorrah, etc. -- Isaiah 1.10ff (M);
just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which likewise indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire, serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire. Jude 7
2. Vivid Reminder in the Dead/Salt Sea
C. Example of Risking God's Will -- Yeshua (Jesus) in Gethsemane -- Luke 24.42-42
41 And he withdrew from them about a stone's throw, and knelt down and prayed, 42 "Father, if thou art willing, remove this cup from me; nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done."
1. Predicted betrayal/denial/sufferings
2. Knew the brutality of Roman crucifixion (not for citizens of Rome)
3. He had an inner battle
a. Four Cups at Passover: Sanctification; Praise; Redemption; Covenant
b. The Fifth Cup -- Jeremiah 25.15
Thus the LORD, the God of Israel, said to me: "Take from my hand this cup of the wine of wrath, and make all the nations to whom I send you drink it.
1. This prayer is a reminder to DO the will of God (James 1.22)
a. Represents an intense yearning to do what GOD wants
b. More than legalistic rule-keeping; going through the motions; or Fire insurance
c. It is a disciple's desire to advance the kingdom/kingship of God on earth by doing his will
2. A Paradox -- we receive by giving; we lose by holding back
In its January 25, l988 issue, TIME magazine provided an insight on the dangers of selfishness and the rewards of sharing. Addressing the introduction of the videocassette recorder, which was still new at that time, the article said, "Sony Incorporated had made a crucial mistake. While at first Sony kept its Beta technology mostly to itself, JVC, the Japanese inventor of the VHS format, shared its secret with a multitude of other companies. As a result, the market was overwhelmed by the sheer volume of the VHS machines being produced."
This drastically undercut Sony's market share. The first year, Sony lost 40 percent of the market, and by 1987 it controlled only 10 percent."
It's now a couple of decades later. If you have any Beta size videotapes, good luck in finding a machine to play them. The way Sony tried to selfishly control the video market has relegated its Beta-format to "the consumer-electronics graveyard." Even in a cutthroat business, sharing has its rewards.
What would you have done? Shared or not shared?
3. Doing the will of God -- including sharing with others -- removes self-centeredness and focuses us on what is really important -- the will of God
4. The rest of the prayer illustrates ingredients to the harmony we need with God and his will.
