Pack Your Coffins
Joshua 3:5
January 12, 2014
Morning Service
In 1889 The Wesleyan Methodist Church sent out a group of missionaries to begin the first mission work in the world. The team went to Sierra Leone and struggled to start the mission. When the team departed from the United States, they packed their belongings in their own coffins. Six of the team members died in the effort to establish the church and five more died shortly after returning home.
Sierra Leone now has 202 churches, 29,558 members, a hospital and a Bible college. All of this is the result of the service and sacrifice of those first missionaries who were willing to go where God called them to go.
The world has yet to see what God will do with and for and through and in and by the man who is fully and wholly consecrated to Him. – Revival speaker to Dwight Moody
Consecration is at the heart of living a holy life. Consecration is the center of Christlikeness. Consecration means to be set apart, to be fully devoted and to be completely committed. The measure of a consecrated life is the extent that our lives are set apart for God’s glory.
"Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do amazing things among you." Joshua 3:5
Basic Background
Joshua has led the people of Israel back to the Promised Land. Moses has recently died and Joshua is now moving forward into the land to prepare for conquest. Before the people can enter Canaan, they must first cross the Jordan River. Once this is completed the army of Israel will begin facing the various enemies throughout the land.
The night before the crossing, Joshua calls the people together and reminds them that God is with them. He calls them to commit to the journey ahead of them and to consecrate themselves to the LORD. He calls them to set themselves apart for the work of God.
1. God expects us to consecrate our lives
Character: Who we are internally
Commitment: How we follow through
Conduct: How we live
Change: Ways we are different
Is your life any different because you encountered Christ?
The world is watching us to see if there is something genuine about Christianity. They want to see if we really live what we say we believe. If we don’t really live it, we don’t really believe it.
God calls us to live in a different manner. He expects us to live set apart for His service. He expects us to live separated for His glory. Being set apart or separated does not mean that we don’t interact with the world around us. We cannot afford to circle the wagons and wait for people to come to us. We need to follow the example of Jesus who went out to the hurting, helpless and harassed. Jesus went out to broken people living in a sin soaked world. Living a life that is set apart means that we engage the world without becoming like the world. We are called to live differently so that the world can be changed.
We are to be different in our…
Work Life
We should give our employers a higher level of work ethic than those who do not follow Christ
Relationships
We should relate with people differently because we have a personal relationship with Christ.
Finances
We should use our finances in a manner that honors God as the owner of everything. We should be willing to give back to God’s work because He owns it all anyway.
Spiritual Life
We should give our everything to our spiritual life to become more like Christ.
* Worship
* Service
* Prayer
* Study
Paul called the Corinthian church and our church to a consecrated lifestyle. Listen to his words in 1 Corinthians 6:20 -For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's (NKJV).
Paul is calling for nothing less than an absolute commitment to Christ. He is advocating an all or nothing proposal. Since we have been bought with the blood of Jesus, we need to give back to Jesus our life. God doesn’t just want your body but He wants the whole of your life dedicated to Him. He deserves nothing less than our absolute best and our whole being. We are called to glorify God in the way that we live.
Q: Is how you are living right now bringing glory to God or is it bringing glory to you? Is Jesus sitting on the throne of your life or are you?
2. God can only move in mighty ways after we consecrate
Joshua made it clear that if the people would consecrate themselves, God would do amazing things. The issue is that nothing would happen if the people would not set themselves apart for God. The reality is that God seldom moves for those who do not commit to Him. God is seeking a greater commitment from us. He wants to see more and more of our lives given to His Lordship.
Churches and Christians will miss out on the amazing work of god if they do not devote themselves to Him. The more we give our lives over to Christ, the more He is able to do amazing things in us. Churches fail to see souls saved because they do not consecrate their work to Christ. Christians fail to see a great outpouring of God’s power in their lives because they do not further commit to Him.
Q: What is holding you back from seeing more of God’s amazing things in your life?
We are called to live sold out to God. Our whole life is under the Lordship of Christ. He is the master and we are the servant. He is the owner and we are the stewards. He is the King and we are the subjects. The problem is that we often get these roles reversed and we live with a reversed theology. We often think that Jesus is here to serve us and our purpose. We will do whatever we please and then ask God to bless it. The issue is that we fail to understand that we are not the ones in control. We do not get God on our terms, He comes to us on His terms.
Our lives should be like a house with a for sale sign sitting in front. There are different messages that go with those signs. A for sale sign means that the owner is searching for a buyer. Many Christians try to live this way, they never give their lives fully to Christ and they never experience the kind of life God has for them. A for rent sign means that the home is only given temporarily. Christians try to rent out their lives to Christ on a temporary basis and try to retain ownership and control. A sold sign means that a new owner is taking over. Christians need to understand that they do not give God control until their lives are under His ownership.
3. God begins to move
The events of Joshua show that the people walked into the Promised Land on dry ground. God stopped the flow of the Jordan to allow the people to enter the land in miraculous fashion. God gives the people a vivid reminder that He was with them.
When we consecrate, God begins to move. Notice that God does nothing until Israel consecrates themselves again. The day after God does the amazing in their midst. God stops the water and lets them walk on dry ground. The water of the Jordan was a reminder of the work of the Red Sea. Again, God parts the water and sends His people forward. Instead of just being free the people are moving to their promised future in a new land.
The promise of Christ is not a parting of waters or a piece of ground here on earth. God parted the waters of the Red Sea to set the people free from captivity in Egypt. God promised His people a national that would be theirs and a land that was blessed. God not only set the people free, He prepared a place for them. The promise of Christ is found in a freedom from the power of sin and death. The work of Jesus focuses us on a promised place in heaven. Jesus told the disciples that I go to prepare a place for you.
Conclusion
Pack your coffin
* Doubts * Fears *Failures * Reservations
Now is the time to
Remember
Remember the way your life was just after you came to know Christ.
Rededicate
Renew
Refresh
Revive
