Before we go over our memory Scriptures I want to go over a true example of a mistake versus sin as an example of what the difference is and why the Lord looks upon the two differently.
Last week we introduced a new memory Scripture and I told you that the new memory Scripture was printed in your bulletin so that you could print it out and put it somewhere where you would be able to see it for the next few months and get it firmly planted into your hearts and minds.
In reality I had printed the bulletin inserts before changing the memory Scripture to the new one and had forgotten about it. This is a mistake and not a sin. The action was unintentional and not intended to cause harm to someone else or to elevate myself in someone else’s eyes.
Even though it was not a sin I felt the need to apologize to you and to the Lord for my failure and the Lord knows and I hope you know that that failure was unintentional and not motivated by any ill intention.
John Wesley wrote that those whose hearts were fully given over to the Lord were not free from infirmities nor mistakes.
Now if I had knowingly lied to you in order to deceive or harm you or to elevate myself in your eyes that would be sin and sin requires confession and repentance and the seeking of forgiveness from the Lord.
I hope this clarifies the difference between a mistake and a sin.
But before we leave the subject entirely … if you sin and in your confession to an offended person or to the Lord and you call it a mistake, is knowingly labeling the sin as a mistake a sin???
Two weeks ago we talked about the amazing gift of the Gospel which is salvation brought about through God’s grace and by turning away from sin and placing our faith and trust, in fact our entire soul and lives, in the hands of the Lord.
Last week we talked about the inevitable works that would naturally flow out of such a changed life.
Naturally such discussion should bring us to examine our own lives. Am I really fully given over to Jesus? Do I love the Lord with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength? Or, am I just acting the part and just hoping that I’m “saved enough” to get into heaven? If you ever ask the question, “How much can I sin and still get into heaven” you most likely are not saved at all because your desires for the world are still predominate in your life and your desire for heaven is for your own pleasure and not for the glory of God!
And, what about these inevitable works that would naturally flow out of a life given over to Jesus?
Do you see them in your life? Aside from coming to church on most Sundays do you see any activity flowing out of your life indicating a desire to please the Lord for His benefit and the benefit of His kingdom or do your actions indicate that you are still the center of your life?
Perhaps you’re wondering what you should do if you find that you are not fully committed to the Lord and His Kingdom?
What could you do to break the chains of sin in your life?
What if you don’t even know what you need spiritually?
The Bible says that if we seek the Lord with all of our hearts He will be found.
Amos 5:4 - This is what the Lord says to Israel: “Seek Me and live”
The Lord God Almighty has not pursued the redemption of sinful humanity in order to hide from us! When we seek Him in humility and truth He will be found! Thank you, Jesus!!
When it comes to growing closer to the Lord or to breaking the chains of sin over our lives or to asking Him for something we often think of going to the Word of God and prayer, or talking with trusted Christians who are mature in the faith but there is one spiritual discipline that has almost been forgotten; fasting.
We almost always think of fasting as going without food and usually in conjunction with prayer.
We see fasting in the Bible from the end of 1st Samuel at the time of King Saul’s death and we see the practice of fasting all the way to the 14th chapter of Acts.
We see Queen Esther and all of the Jews fasting as exiles in the kingdom of Persia.
We see King David fasting for the Lord to deliver the son born to the wife of Uriah the Hittite.
We see Jesus fasting for 40 days after His baptism and before He started His ministry on earth.
We see that the disciples of John the Baptist fasted.
We see that the Pharisees fasted.
The church at Antioch fasting and praying before they sent Barnabas and Saul on a missionary journey.
So, perhaps we should pay more attention to fasting when the Lord calls us to do so.
But, what is fasting?
The best thing to do is to look up some examples in Scripture!
Good fasting:
Nehemiah 1:1-4
Nehemiah is one of the prophets of the LORD in captivity in Persia. He is also the cup bearer for King Artaxerxes so he serves the King directly.
Lets read Nehemiah 1:1-4 now …
Do you think that it was a coincidence of all of the exiles from the many nations that Babylon had conquered that Nehemiah, a prophet of the God of Heaven, was in direct contact with King Artaxerxes on a daily basis?
Do you think that it was a coincidence that a report of the conditions of Jerusalem and the Temple of the LORD came to Nehemiah at exactly the time the Jeremiah had prophesied?
Why was Nehemiah fasting and praying? He was distressed about the condition of the city where the Temple of the LORD was located.
Nehemiah’s heart was distressed because the glory of the Lord had been reduced to a curse.
In the eyes of the surrounding nations the gods of Babylon and now Persia were superior to the God of Israel otherwise He would have protected them from being overthrown.
The conquering nations did not understand that the LORD had allowed this to happen as a fulfillment of His Word regarding what would happen if they were unfaithful to Him.
The conquering nations did not understand that the reason Israel fell to the armies of other nations was because the people of Israel had bowed their knees to the gods of the other nations and had rejected the LORD who had brought them out of Egypt with great might and power.
Nehemiah was distressed because the name of the LORD was being humiliated among the nations instead of being glorified.
Was the fast of Nehemiah a righteous fast? Was it a good example to follow?
Was this a form of fasting acceptable to the LORD?
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Let’s look at another fast.
Isaiah 58:1-9
In the time of Isaiah the people of Judah are still in their home land but the kings can’t seem to make up their minds as to who they should trust for their protection, the surrounding nations who they try to bribe into being their allies or the Lord God of Heaven.
In this passage we will see them living sinfully but fasting ritualistically.
(Read Isaiah 58:1-9 and explain it as you go along …)
What an amazing example!
The people were going through the motions of fasting and humility and all the while abusing others and they seem astonished that the Lord is not responding to their pleas.
In fasting we always think of giving up food. In this Scripture the Lord calls on them to give up their sinful acts as a form of fasting.
Were these people exhibiting a form of fasting acceptable to the Lord?
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When it comes to fasting we must always be on guard that it does not become an empty ritual.
Matthew 6:16-18 NLT
“When you fast, don’t make it obvious, as the hypocrites do, for they try to look miserable and disheveled so people will admire them for their fasting.
“I tell you the truth, that is the only reward they will ever get. But when you fast, comb your hair and wash your face.
“Then no one will notice that you are fasting, except your Father, who knows what you do in private. And your Father, who sees everything, will reward you.”
In the Bible we also see the church in Antioch fasting and praying before sending Barnabas and Saul out on a missionary journey and they in turn would fast and pray before setting up elders in each church that was started.
In the Bible we see the wicked king of Nineveh and occupants of that city fasting and humbling themselves before the Lord after hearing the prophecies of the Lord through Jonah.
What should draw us to fasting?
For those who are being persecuted and put to death for the name of Christ?
For the sinfulness of our nation?
For the slaughter of our unborn children?
For those who are sick among us?
For the Lord to be glorified in and through us?
For the salvation of the world?
The lost condition of the unsaved?
Sin in the lives of others?
A lukewarm attitude toward the Lord and righteousness?
For allowing our lives to revolve around us instead of the Kingdom of God?
Sin in our lives?
A need for spiritual introspection?
Let’s take a moment and think about our own spiritual needs?
What would be my greatest need?
Imagine a boxer who had a tremendously powerful punch. The only problem with this boxer was that he would stand flat footed and hold his hands down around his waist. Even though he had a powerful punch he always lost his fights because with his hands down around his waist his opponent would always come out, hit him on the chin and knock him out.
Now, imagine that this boxer had a trainer who told him, among other things, that he needed to hold his hands up and protect his chin.
That is what the Holy Spirit does for each of us, He sees the faults in our spiritual lives and instructs us how to fix the problem.
Do we even want to know our real spiritual condition and are we willing to follow the instructions of the Lord if He corrects us?
Do you know that there are two different last verses to the song, “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing”?
And, the two verses show a dramatically different spiritual condition.
Have you ever taken a test where it asks you the question, “Which of these two statements most closely reflects your current spiritual condition?”
Let’s take a look and see …
In each version the first two lines are identical:
O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be
Now compare these two lines:
Let Thy grace now, like a fetter - Bind my wandering heart to Thee
Let Thy grace now, like a fetter - Bind my yielded heart to Thee
Now these two lines:
Prone to wander, Lord I feel it.
Prone to leave the God I love.
Let me know Thee in Thy fullness
Guide me by Thy mighty hand
And finally these two lines:
Here’s my heart O take and seal it
Seal it for Thy courts above.
‘Til transformed in Thine own image
In Thy presence I shall stand
The optometrist always asks, “Which is clearer, one or two?”
Which more clearly reflects your spiritual condition?
1) Prone to wander, Lord I feel it. Prone to leave the God I love.
Here’s my heart O take and seal it Seal it for Thy courts above.
Or 2) Let me know Thee in Thy fullness, Guide me by Thy mighty hand
‘Til transformed in Thine own image In Thy presence I shall stand
As you look into your own heart where do you see yourself?
Are you someone who is prone to wander; prone to even abandon the Lord?
And if you feel prone to abandon the Lord can He REALLY be "the One I love?"
Or are you passionately seeking to know the Lord in His fullness, following the guidance of His mighty hand and all the while being transformed into His magnificent image?
Let us forsake the former in favor of the latter! Praise be to God for His glorious riches in Christ Jesus!
