New Years Resolution...
"Live life like You Were Dying"
2 Peter 3:10-11 MSG
But when the Day of God’s Judgment does come, it will be unannounced, like a thief. The sky will collapse with a thunderous bang, everything disintegrating in a huge conflagration, earth and all its works exposed to the scrutiny of Judgment. Since everything here today might well be gone tomorrow, do you see how essential it is to live a holy life? Daily expect the Day of God, eager for its arrival. The galaxies will burn up and the elements melt down that day—but we’ll hardly notice. We’ll be looking the other way, ready for the promised new heavens and the promised new earth, all landscaped with righteousness.
When that day happens will you be ready for it?
There was a song...that Tim McGraw had a hit with a few years back
and it was called "live like you were dying" and it went a little like this
Illus.
He said I was in my early 40's,
With a lot of life before me,
And a moment came that stopped me on a dime.
I spent most of the next days, lookin' at the x-rays,
Talkin' 'bout the options and talkin' 'bout sweet time.
Asked him when it sank in, that this might really be the real end.
How's it hit ya, when you get that kind of news.
Man what ya do.
And he says,
I went sky divin',
I went rocky mountain climbin',
I went 2.7 seconds on a bull name Fumanchu.
And I loved deeper,
And I spoke sweeter,
And I gave forgiveness I've been denying,
And he said someday I hope you get the chance,
To live like you were dyin'.
It seems as though the song says, that people always put off a lot of things…
And they say one day I'll do this..
Someday I'll start to do this differently..
When I get older...i'll start living for the Lord and
doing all the things I know I'm supposed to be doing now
Let me tell you this…
No one..on their deathbed has ever said...
I wish I would have made more money..
And I have preached a lot of funerals for a lot of people
and I can tell you no one has ever took it with them to eternity..either
No..everyone always wishes they would've done more things for good
and spent more time with the ones that they love the most
and the ones they hold dear to there heart.
And I've always heard people say I wish I would've done more for the Lord
Never one time...have I heard someone say I wish I would've done less...ONLY MORE!
So my question is… Why don't we do more?
Why do we wait?
Why don't we "Live" the life that God has planned for us now?
Romans 1:16-17 MSG
It’s news I’m most proud to proclaim, this extraordinary Message of God’s powerful plan to rescue everyone who trusts him, starting with Jews and then right on to everyone else! God’s way of putting people right shows up in the acts of faith, confirming what Scripture has said all along: “The person in right standing before God by trusting him really lives.”
Illus.
“The most unhappy person in the world is not someone who didn’t get what he or she wanted. The most unhappy person is the one who got what he or she wanted and then found out that it wasn’t as wonderful as expected.
The secret of a happy life is not to get what you want but to live with what you’ve got. Most of us spend our lives concentrating on what we don’t have instead of thanking God for what we do have. Then we wake up, our life is over, and we missed the beauty's of the present. You think about that.”
It's a battle of the wills...and for whatever reason
our flesh almost always chooses our will...
and usually we win the battle only to wind up losing the war...
1 John 2:15-17 MSG
Don’t love the world’s ways. Don’t love the world’s goods. Love of the world squeezes out love for the Father. Practically everything that goes on in the world—wanting your own way, wanting everything for yourself, wanting to appear important—has nothing to do with the Father. It just isolates you from him.
The world and all its wanting, wanting, wanting is on the way out—but whoever does what God wants is set for eternity.
You see...God says I have abundant life for you..if you will only TRUST ME!
John 10:6-10 MSG
Jesus told this simple story, but they had no idea what he was talking about. So he tried again. “I’ll be explicit, then. I am the Gate for the sheep. All those others are up to no good—sheep stealers, every one of them. But the sheep didn’t listen to them. I am the Gate. Anyone who goes through me will be cared for—will freely go in and out, and find pasture. A thief is only there to steal and kill and destroy. I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.
A More and better life than we ever dreamed of?
But Pastor...I want you to know I'm a Big Dreamer
Good...I hope you are...Dream Big
I want you to know you are no match for God...because no
Matter how high you set the bar...God is still more awesome and capable of deliverance than you could ever imagine...amen?
But still some will say for whatever the reason is…
That sounds great, but I think we can do better than that...Can you imagine?
Like God the Creator of the universe…
Who spoke the world into existence…
Who always was, who will always be…
The One who knows all things, about all things…
doesn't know what He's talking about here in Scripture
God wants to give you abundant life..the devil wants you dead
Hmmm...I"ll have to think about that one???
Now I'll have to admit…
When I was 16 years old, even though I didn't...
I thought I knew a lot more than my dad did...
But by the time I reached 18 I knew that my father..
was a lot smarter than what I thought he was...
and I wondered how he got so educated in those two years?
Some people never make that realization with God...
They just go through life running into One roadblock after another...
Always thinking that they can do things better
and make better decisions on their own...
Making left turns their whole life long… And never any right ones
How many times do you have to wreck a car before you finally admit
You really shouldn't be driving?
Who are they trying to convince? And at what point in their life ...
do they realize it's just not working out?
I don't know if you've noticed lately… But there are
a lot of lost and lonely people in the world...
that need to hear a message of hope…
They need to hear the message of the Gospel…
but the question is, who is going to tell them?
Which brings us back to what we were talking about earlier…
The somedays..and the why don't we's...
You know the wish I would've scenarios
We know the message is most certainly worthy of being repeated...if not, why did we ever want to be a part of it in the first place?
And we hold in our power..The most important thing in the world…
the knowledge of the gift of eternal life…
So what are we waiting for?
It's not enough for us to get the realization..to live like we were dying
We need to come to the realization… To live like those around us were dying...
And that they don't have to die without the opportunity of knowing Jesus..cause we know the way.
If any one ask you for directions and you know how to get to where they're wanting to go...don't you stop what your doing and tell them the way?
It's the same way with spirituality...millions of people are looking for some sense of direction in their life...and "YOU" know what it is...
Isn't about time you let them know...that you know the answer to all life's problems their looking to solve??
The correct response should be YES...for
One day we will all be held accountable as to what we did with our knowledge of Christ!
Colossians 3:1-2,15-17 MSG
So if you’re serious about living this new resurrection life with Christ, act like it. Pursue the things over which Christ presides. Don’t shuffle along, eyes to the ground, absorbed with the things right in front of you. Look up, and be alert to what is going on around Christ—that’s where the action is. See things from his perspective.
Vs. 15-17
Let the peace of Christ keep you in tune with each other, in step with each other. None of this going off and doing your own thing...
And cultivate thankfulness. Let the Word of Christ—the Message—have the run of the house. Give it plenty of room in your lives. Instruct and direct one another using good common sense.
And sing, sing your hearts out to God! Let every detail in your lives—words, actions, whatever—be done in the name of the Master, Jesus, thanking God the Father every step of the way.
Illus.
C.H. Spurgeon told the story of the preacher who was walking in the country side and stopped by a farm house for a drink of water. The old farmer who lived there went out to talk to the preacher. As they were talking the preacher noticed that the barn had a weather vane on it that was spinning around in the wind. On the weather vane the words "GOD IS LOVE" was engraved.
The preacher said to the man, "I don’t think that is a very good way to talk about God’s love. Are you saying that God’s love is Wishy Washy and changes depending on the way the wind blows?" " No, no" said the farmer. "That Weather Vane is saying, "No matter which way the wind blows, God is Love."
And that is true… God's love is everywhere and it's up to us
to share it everywhere we go with everyone we meet
every chance we get!
Well if I did that...everyone would think I was a Jesus Fanatic!!
What's the first three letters spell...that's right FAN!
That's the problem...what people might think..."Who Cares"
If your a Christian...you shouldn't be concerned with what people think
Wether or not your a Jesus Fanatic...
Because it's something they should already know to be true...
By the way you live your life!!! Amen?
--I think all of us have probably made this assumption--
When were young we like to think were invincible...
and we think that we have an endless
amount of time to get things done in our lives..
But the older we get and the more we see death along the way… We come to the realization of how fragile mortality really is.
2 Peter 3:8-9 MSG
Don’t overlook the obvious here, friends. With God, one day is as good as a thousand years, a thousand years as a day. God isn’t late with his promise as some measure lateness. He is restraining himself on account of you, holding back the End because he doesn’t want anyone lost. He’s giving everyone space and time to change.
God doesn't want anyone to Parish… Because He knows what lies ahead
He has given everyone a choice to either an eternal life in heaven..
Or and endless life of damnation in hell...
The opportunity to come to know Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior has been extended to all… But it is an opportunity that is not going to last forever.
James 4:14 NKJ
whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.
Jesus triumphant return… His second coming is closer now than it ever has been
And while the time is short to share the gospel… There is...still time!!
TBS. The only thing that matters in this life is what we do for the kingdom of God
And one day we will be held accountable for what we have done with our time
Some may say, I want to tell others about the gospel…
But I just don't know how to and I'm afraid I'll mess it up
And God with all his infinite wisdom and knowledge…knew that some might feel that way and said he would be there to help you.
Phil. 4:13 NKJ
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
MSG says...Whatever I have, wherever I am, I can make it through anything in the One who makes me who I am.
He wants you to know that He would never ask you to do anything that He would not be willing to be there with you as you were doing it. Amen?
He always has been there all along…in every situation you've ever faced
You just may have never sensed His loving presence...
till after it was over
Have you ever said to yourself…
'Wow...I don't know how in the world I made it through that one… But you did!
By the Grace of God...You did!
Amen?
Matthew 28:16-20 NKJ
16 Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them. 17 When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted.
18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted.
They were human and Jesus knew it… After all he created them
And that's why he told them...I am with you always even to the end of the age
What he was saying was "trust Me and have some faith"
and I will be there to help you as you do!
I'll close with this Illus.
Two Horses ~ Author Unknown
Just up the road from my home is a field, with two horses in it.
>From a distance, each looks like every other horse. But if you stop your
car, or are walking by, you will notice something quite amazing.
Looking into the eyes of one horse will disclose that he is blind.
His owner has chosen not to have him put down, but has made a good home
for him....This alone is amazing.
If nearby and listening, you will hear the sound of a bell. Looking around
for the source of the sound, you will see that it comes from the smaller
horse in the field.
Attached to her halter is a small bell. It lets her blind friend know
where she is, so he can follow her.
As you stand and watch these two friends, you’ll see how she is always
checking on him, and that he will listen for her bell and then slowly walk
to where she is, trusting that she will not lead him astray.
When she returns to the shelter of the barn each evening, she stops occasionally
and looks back, making sure her friend isn’t too far behind to hear the
bell.
Like the owner of these two horses, God does not give up on us...
just because we are not perfect or because we have problems or challenges.
He watches over us and even brings others into our lives to help us when we
are in need.
Sometimes we are the blind horse being guided by the little ringing bell
of those who God places in our lives.
Other times we are the guide horse,
helping others see. Good friends are like this...
You don’t always see them...but you know they are always there.
Friends we need to have faith… Sometimes it's blind faith
In fact blind is a good word to describe faith
Because after all we can't see it… But we know that it works for those who believe
Hebrews 11:1-2 MSG
The fundamental fact of existence is that this trust in God, this faith, is the firm foundation under everything that makes life worth living. It’s our handle on what we can’t see. The act of faith is what distinguished our ancestors, set them above the crowd.
Help us to realize what we have… and to be a guide in this world
telling and helping others, ringing the bell for Christ and showing them the way!
Amen?
Let's pray.
