BETWEEN A ROCK AND A HARD PLACE. --- REGULAR CHECK-UPS?
By Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com (I do this lesson in two parts.)
REGULAR CHECK UPS?
Near the end of the school year, I was teaching the 6th grade just out of Pennington Gap, Virginia. The section we were studying in Health was the 10 SIGNAL SIGNS OF CANCER. I had my aid run off copies of the SIGNAL SIGNS OF CANCER. My aid accidently ran double the amount I needed. I was in the hall and I saw the 5th grade teacher and offered her the extra copies. She read them while we were standing there. She bowed her head and said I have all 10 of these signs now. She made a doctor’s appointment for the next week. She found out she had terminal cancer and had a short time to live.
At the end of the summer, a new year began. With tears in my eyes, I took her name plate off her class room door … 30 years she taught in that class room. She was so busy with her husband and her daily life she forgot TO HAVE A CHECK UP?
TEXT:
2 Corinthians 13:5 Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?
2 Corinthians 13:5 (NLT) Examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus Christ is among you; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith.
2 Corinthians 13:5 (MSG) Test yourselves to make sure you are solid in the faith. Don't drift along taking everything for granted. Give yourselves regular checkups. You need firsthand evidence, not mere hearsay, that Jesus Christ is in you. Test it out. If you fail the test, do something about it.
THIS IS A TEST! THIS IS ONLY A TEST! THIS STORM SHALL PASS! THIS PROBLEM CAN BRING FAILURE OR IT CAN BRING GREAT OPPORTUNITY.
LIFE IS 10% WHAT HAPPENS TO YOU! 90% HOW YOU HANDLE WHAT HAPPENS TO YOU.
THE BATTLE IS NOT EXTERNAL, THE BATTLE IS INTERNAL.
Why do birds sing? Because they can. There is a Thrush that sings its best during dark storms. I am amazed how God loves to give us a song in our dark times. Sometimes we play music because we feel like it, other times the song is simply by faith. My friend, arise and sing unto the Lord. Never allow our enemies to steal our singing abilities.
WHEN YOU LOSE SIGHT OF THE GOAL ARE YOU CAN SEEM TO FOCUS ON IS THE OBSTACLES.
I was driving slowly down a small country road. I saw two birds fighting over a grasshopper. I came to a stop and watch the birds dancing and fighting each other. They were really being mean to each other as they fought over the grasshopper. I thought there are a million grasshoppers in that field, why fight over that one? It was beautiful to watch them jump up and down and dance as they fought one another. I saw a large 18 wheeler coming at a high rate of speed. I tried to honk my horn and warn them, but they was so focused on fighting each other they never heard me. The next thing I know there are two dead birds in road and the grasshopper jumps back into the grass? How foolish to so focus on fighting each other that that they died that day. What a waste?
I have a preacher friend, Doug Fightmaster, that wrote a story he called GET OUT OF MY WAY.
The story asked a question: HAVE YOU EVER BEEN LOOKING STRAIGHT AT SOMETHING, BUT YOU CANNOT SEE IT BECAUSE SOMETHING IS BLOCKING YOUR LINE OF SIGHT? He goes on to tell about two ducks fighting each other in front of his house. He was enjoying watching the ducks fight in the road. They kept fighting and moving until finally the ducks were hidden from his view because a huge tree was blocking his view. He could still hear them, but his vision was limited because of the large tree.
Doug said that the HOLY SPIRIT WHISPERED TO HIS HEART: DOUG, MANY TIMES THAT IS WHY YOU CAN’T SEE WHAT I AM DOING, BECAUSE YOUR DESIRES, YOUR BUSYNESS HAVE HINDERED YOUR VISUAL FIELD AND YOU HAVE ALLOWED THE ENEMY TO DISTORT OR BLIND YOUR ABILIITY TO SEE CLEARLY WHAT IS REALLY HAPPENING, BECAUSE SOMETHING IS BLOCKING YOUR VIEW.
Doug then thought about: WHAT HAS BLOCKED MY SPIRITUAL VISION? ARE YOU HAVING TROUBLE SEEING WHAT JESUS DESIRES TO DO IN YOU, THROUGH YOU AND AROUND YOU?
WILL A MAN ROB GOD?
ROB: TO TAKE SOMETHING BY NEGLECT, TO FORCE, VIOLENCE OR THREATS, to take something that does not belong to you, to wrongly take what is not yours.
DO WE EVER STEAL OR ROB HOLY THINGS THAT BELONGS TO GOD?
Malachi 3:8 Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.
OF COURSE WE KNOW PEOPLE THAT STEAL what belongs to God. We are stewards of God’s money.
I had a man tell me once, I sorry I can’t give to the church, I have bought this big boat and the payments are so high, I cannot give anymore? I thought GOD and ME ARE PAYING FOR THAT BOAT?
WE CAN ROB GOD OF MORE THAN MONEY, WE CAN NOT TRUST THE WAY GOD IS GOING TO HANDLE THIS SITUATION AND DECIDE I CAN HANDLE THIS BETTER THAN GOD.
WHEN I PASTORED IN THE MOUNTAINS, I HAD A VERY REAL DREAM… I HEARD SCREAMING AND LOOKED BEHIND ME AND I SAW ONE OF MY CHURCH MEMBERS… OUR ENEMY HAD HER BY THE HANDS AND WAS DRAGGING HER INTO HELL. I SCREAMED: NO, JESUS, NO!
Romans 12:19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.
I could smell sulfur and smoke so much that the taste was in my mouth. I could hear screams of torture and pain that was deafening in volume coming from hell. The enemy just keep pulling her. She looked me right in the eye. Her eyes spoke to me: HELP ME! HELP ME! PLEASE HELP ME!
I said: JESUS, THIS IS ONE OF MY BEST WORKERS. She helps me in any way she can. She never says bad words. She is faithful to her family and the church. LORD, THERE IS SOME KIND OF MISTAKE HERE. Jesus, she loves you.
Jesus said: SHE IS A THIEF AND A ROBBER. I said, she is a GIVER! Jesus spoke to me: her heart is full of anger, bitterness, disappointments, hurt pain. She is angry at family and people from many years ago. She is so full of anger that she has lived her life getting even and full of vengeance. She has drank THE POISON OF BITTERNESS AND UNFORGIVENESS UNTIL HER HEART IS SO HEAVY THAT SHE REFUSES TO HEED MY WORD AND THE BIDDING OF MY SPIRIT. She is more than angry, she is so full of wrath that she HAS TO TRY TO GET EVEN.
Romans 12:19 (MSG) Don't insist on getting even; that's not for you to do. "I'll do the judging," says God. "I'll take care of it."
CONSIDER YOUR VISION? HAVE YOU EVER BEEN SO BENT ON ANGER AND REVENGE THAT YOU LOSE YOUR VISUAL FIELD OF WHAT IS REALLY IMPORTANT?
Anger and revenge are like DRINKING POISON and then expecting your EX or those that have hurt you that have become your enemy to fall over dead. ANGER IS ALLOWING SOMEONE TO LIVE RENT FREE IN YOUR MIND. THERE IS ONLY ONE THING THAT CAN SET YOU FREE: FORGIVENESS.
Proverbs 29:18 Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.
Proverbs 29:18 (NLT) When people do not accept divine guidance, they run wild. But whoever obeys the law is joyful.
Proverbs 29:18 (MSG) If people can't see what God is doing, they stumble all over themselves; But when they attend to what he reveals, they are most blessed.
JUST AS HAVING PHYSICAL EYE PROBLEMS, SO WE CAN DEVELOP SPIRITUAL EYE ISSUES.
We can be:
MYOPIC= near sighted
HYPEROPIC= far sighted
CATARACT= cloudy…
TUNNEL VISION= visual field without peripheral, side vision, narrow viewpoint,
GLACOMA= high eye pressure
MACULAR DEGENERATION= (wet, dry) lose ability to focus
BETWEEN A ROCK AND A HARD PLACE. CAN WE SEE SPIRITUAL REALITY? BLIND PREACHERS?
WILL WE IGNORE THE SPIRITUAL INDICATORS AND WARNING SIGNALS? THIS HAS TO BE GOD?
BAALAM WAS A PREACHER OF SORTS? HE HAS BEEN OFFERED TO BECOME A MILLIONAIRE AND HAVE A NATIONAL MINISTRY… ALL HE HAS TO DO IS CURSE GOD’S PEOPLE. THIS HAS TO BE THE DOOR OF OPPORTUNITY THAT HIS EGO
HAS DESIRED…
BAALAM FACED SPIRITUAL EROSION… LIVING ON THE FENCE… BAALAM WILL FIND HIMSELF BETWEEN A ROCK AND A HARD PLACE WITH A STUPID DONKEY.
Wow, how sad is it when the Preacher’s donkey is SMARTER than he is…
It is even sadder when the DONKEY CAN SPIRITUALLY SEE MORE THAN THE MAN OF GOD?
Numbers 22:21And Balaam rose up in the morning, and saddled his ass, and went with the princes of Moab.
22 And God's anger was kindled because he went: and the angel of the LORD stood in the way for an adversary against him. Now he was riding upon his ass, and his two servants were with him. 23 And the ass saw the angel of the LORD standing in the way, and his sword drawn in his hand: and the ass turned aside out of the way, and went into the field: and Balaam smote the ass, to turn her into the way. 24 But the angel of the LORD stood in a path of the vineyards, a wall being on this side, and a wall on that side. 25 And when the ass saw the angel of the LORD, she thrust herself unto the wall, and crushed Balaam's foot against the wall: and he smote her again.
26 And the angel of the LORD went further, and stood in a narrow place, where was no way to turn either to the right hand or to the left. 27 And when the ass saw the angel of the LORD, she fell down under Balaam: and Balaam's anger was kindled, and he smote the ass with a staff. 28 And the LORD opened the mouth of the ass, and she said unto Balaam, What have I done unto thee, that thou hast smitten me these three times? 29 And Balaam said unto the ass, Because thou hast mocked me: I would there were a sword in mine hand, for now would I kill thee. 30 And the ass said unto Balaam, Am not I thine ass, upon which thou hast ridden ever since I was thine unto this day? was I ever wont to do so unto thee? And he said, Nay. 31 Then the LORD opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of the LORD standing in the way, and his sword drawn in his hand: and he bowed down his head, and fell flat on his face. 32 And the angel of the LORD said unto him, Wherefore hast thou smitten thine ass these three times? behold, I went out to withstand thee, because thy way is perverse before me: 33 And the ass saw me, and turned from me these three times: unless she had turned from me, surely now also I had slain thee, and saved her alive.
SPIRITUAL COMPROMISE POSES GREAT DANGER TO ONE’S SPIRITUAL VISION.
MINISTRY ACCORDING TO THE BUDGET AND THE SIZE OF THE CROWD CAN BECOME A GREAT DANGER.
THE PREACHER IS IN BETWEEN A ROCK AND A HARD PLACE, WHEN THE PAIN GETS GREAT ENOUGH MAYBE WE WILL LISTEN TO THE HEART OF GOD.
QUIT BEATING THE DONKEY! HONESTLY EVALUATE WHERE YOU ARE AND HOW YOU GOT HERE?
The donkey says: Preacher, I have been a good donkey, why are you beating me? LOOK! LOOK! CAN’T YOU SEE?
His your greed and popularity desire blinded you? LOOK, YOU ARE GETTING READY TO PAY A HIGH PRICE FOR THIS EGO PROBLEM YOU HAVE.
CONCLUSION: There should be one goal before us. SIR, WE WOULD SEE JESUS? Maybe there is a hidden lesson between the rock and the hard place? All that matters is Jesus.
John 12:21 The same came therefore to Philip, which was of Bethsaida of Galilee, and desired him, saying, Sir, we would see Jesus.
His servant, Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com
Help enlarge my hands? Pass this on to another?
