Choosing The Painful Will of God
CCCAG September 9th, 2018
Today I’m going to cover a difficult topic. (Title)
Scripture- John 12:23-36
Intro:
Today’s message will have a lot of build up before we get to the meat of the scripture we are focusing on, but please bear with me because it’s foundational to where God is taking us as a people.
If I was a start out this morning by saying that we are blessed, what would that mean to you?
Does it mean that you have adequate food adequate shelter maybe even a few toys and some extra money in the bank?
Perhaps it means to you that you have a career that you love and have a dream job that you can't wait to get to every Monday morning.
Or would it mean that you're healthy and happy and the loved ones closest to you are healthy and happy?
Understanding God's blessing in those terms is not a bad thing. However, life isn't always like that.
Living life means that we will go through the Valley.
Many times that even means growing familiar the valley of the shadow of death.
Some of us in the past, or currently, or in the future may undergo unspeakable tragedy, unrelenting pain, and great obstacles in life.
During those times, it’s challenging to call ourselves blessed.
Why is that? It has to do with the American Church’s mindset regarding what being blessed means, and how God interacts with us as individuals.
It’s an interesting dilemma we face because our mindset is more similar to that of the 1st century Pharisee than what the bible tells us- that mindset is this- behave right and God has to bless you.
An example of this-
In the year 2000, the Prayer of Jabez book Became the fastest selling book ever. Christians from all over the world and particularly those here in America grabbed it off the shelf and gobbled up it's teaching of begging God for blessing and never knowing pain.
In my opinion, this idea which was spread by this book and many other self-help books disguised as Christian writings did more to weaken the church than anything else. You notice that around that time, the church began to lose its prophetic voice to the nation and entertainment replaced seeking God. Hollywood boldly put out shows mocking Christians and their religion, and gleefully covered things like the priest abuse scandal as if it were the norm.
In a scramble to strengthen it's authority, the mainstream church denominations turned to championing social and political causes to make itself relevant again, all while continuing to losing more and more of its prophetic voice and influence over the culture.
The church sowed to the wind of appeasing the modern culture, and now we are reaping the whirlwind of irrelevance to a new generation of Americans.
Pew research put out a study of people 18-30 years old and why they left the church- the reason is they don’t believe in God anymore and that they church’s message isn’t relevant to them. We lost them because we told them that God is only a God of blessing and when they hit a difficult time and God didn’t seem to come through- poof, there went their faith.
Therefore in 2018, we are witnessing the death of the Christian Church here in America. It is happening faster up here in the North more than it is in the South, but America has become a post-Christian nation, and will eventually reap the consequences of God’s judgement.
You Why am I starting off our time here on Sunday on such a cheery note?
Aren’t you glad you came to church this morning?
There have been many in the church throughout the different denominations that have been praying for a religious revival to come to this nation. This is good and shows god's faithfulness in preserving his remnant people.
I also believe that those prayers will be answered.
However, I don't think there going to be answered the way we think they are going to be answered.
Many of these intercessors are praying for a return of first century Christianity to America and to the entire world.
When we read the Book of Acts we see the marvelous things that these believers did in spreading the name of Jesus Christ in their entire known world.
What we gloss over is the fact that most of them became martyrs to do it.
So this morning, I want to talk to you about choosing the painful will of God.
As we watch the video for John chapter 12, There was a moment in the beginning when you saw Jesus bow his head, seemingly acknowledging that His time on earth was drawing to a close.
Jesus is entering into the Passion Week and is accepting the painful will of God for His life.
As we go through the message today, I encourage you to jot down some notes, and even share them with others as many of us will be faced with the same choice as Jesus-
And yes, Jesus had a choice- He had every amount of free will that you and I do. HE could have said, “Scourging, beating, crucifixion, and death. NOPE!”
Fortunately for us, Jesus took the narrow road. He chose the painful will of God.
Sometimes, the road God is leading you down may involve pain. This is a biblical truth that is not often taught anymore but you can’t honestly read the bible and come up with a different idea. You can’t read the lives of those who went before and not see that God lead them through times of pain and suffering.
IF you have only a superficial blessing mentality then you will never know the true riches of God’s grace and presence like those who choose to hold God’s hand no matter what path HE leads you down.
In those seasons, you have the choice- God’s road or to take the easy route out.
But remember what Jesus said about the easy route-
Matt 7:13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
This morning we are going to look at Choosing the painful will of God. But before that, Let’s pray for God’s blessing on our time.
Prayer
There are a few principles that the bible shows us about choosing the painful will of God. The first one is this- God typically doesn’t launch us immediately into the deep end without teaching us to at least swim a little bit.
I. The Preparation John 12:23
23 Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed.
Most of us have gone through very tough times. Some of us have faced divorce, some of us have faced our children walking away from Christ and the church. Some of us have even had a child who has died before their time.
Some of us may even have made sinful choices and have gone through some very dark seasons.
If most of us were to look back in our lives with 2020 vision, most of us would never want to go through those dark times again.
Personally- There are times when I'm sitting around thinking of my past and wishing that God could somehow take a pair of celestial scissors and just chop certain parts of my life right out of the book of remembrance. I don't want to remember them; I definitely don't want God to remember them, and I don't want the enemy to try to use it against me anymore.
However, there are some great truths in the Bible about how God uses everything in our lives to shape us enter the person that he wants us to be.
You might ask, “How could God use our mess up's, our selfishness, our lust, our greed, and our ugliness for his glory?”
Let me give you some perspective on this-
What does the bible say about humanity’s creation?
Genesis 2:7 Then the LORD God formed a man w from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.
In summary- You and I aren't anything but dirt anyway. That's the Gods honest Bible truth right there. In the first 2 chapters of Genesis the Bible is very clear God formed humanity out of the dust of the earth and created within that dust a living soul.
In other words, you're just a spirit surrounded by dirt. God even doubles down on that point later in the Bible when God describes what happens to our bodies and spirits at death-
ECC 12:7 and the dust (our bodies) returns to the ground it came from, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.
My point here is this, if God is going to use you or use me he's already just working with dirt.
If God can take dirt and make it walk and talk and live a life then God can use whatever sin, addiction, challenge or mess up you have done in the past and use it for his glory.
Doesn’t the bible say-
Romans 8:28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
Now, bringing it back home to the message for this morning-
Some of you may look back upon your past or even your present and ask God why?
What was up with that pain God? What was up with that death at a critical part in my life?
What was the purpose behind that rejection that almost drove me to suicide?
Why am I going through this current struggle what I've begged you and pleaded with you and fasted and prayed for you to take it away and yet it still here?
Because God is using it to prepare you. Your Father is the master potter, and will use anything to shape you into the masterpiece He has in mind.
In all things God works for the good for those who love him. Say all things.
I want to give you some good news this morning. Although it may seem like Friday night Sunday mornings on the way.
This period we are in now is going to culminate in the second coming of Jesus Christ.
in Matthew 25 Jesus is describing what the last days will look like, and the reason He is delaying.
It is because this time is a bridal preparation time. This is where you have to understand the Bible in the context and culture it was written to and written in.
In Jesus’ time, when a man asked a woman to marry him there was an engagement party. Then the bridegroom would leave and not see the bride for an extended period of time as he went and prepared a home for his new bride. Before he came to get his bride, the bride's father would come and inspect the new home that his daughter was about to enter into and then declare it to be ready.
That was the clue to the bride that the bridegroom is poised to return.
That is what is happening in heaven right now. Jesus is preparing a place for us.
Our part is recognizing the times we are living in, and to make ourselves ready.
During this time when the groom was away preparing a place for his bride the bride Would put herself through different kinds of beauty treatments so that on her wedding night she could present herself as a radiant bride.
Choosing the painful will of God is our beauty treatment. We are the bride of Christ and the Bible specifically states that the rapture generation will be as a bride who has made herself ready.
Rev 19:7 Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.
In all things God is working out his purpose. That means any pain you're experiencing right now, God is using it to try and purge you of any fear, doubt or any unbelief Because God wants to present you as a radiant and spotless bride to his beloved son Jesus.
That's the purpose of the preparation come on now let's look at the choice.
II. The Choice Vs 27-28
27 “Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. 28 Father, glorify your name!”
One of my favorite fictional books is the Lord of the Rings. JRR Tolkien is the author of that series, and he is the man who led the famous Christian Apologist and Author CS Lewis to faith in Jesus.
A little trivia nugget for you
In that book the main characters name is Frodo. Frodo comes into possession of something called the ring of power. The ring of power is what gives the evil being within that world named Sauron his power and if Sauron gets this ring he'll be able to take over the entire earth.
And a very memorable scene Frodo is complaining to the wizard Gandalf and says-
“I wish it need not have happened in my time," said Frodo.
That sounds like a lot of us doesn't it? We ask God why was it appointed to me they have to see such hard times? Why do I have to endure so much pain? Why can't I just live my life in peace like those other people over there?
The wizard Gandalf gives an awesome reply-
"So do I," said Gandalf, "and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”
Our modern church is facing a crisis of decision right now. The choice we are facing is the same one that every human being Has had since the beginning of time. The only difference now is that the stakes are getting much higher.
We are entering into a time period right now that hasn’t been seen since the 1st century. In the very near future, confessing in Jesus Christ as your God may cost you. There might be fines, there could be jail, and if God holds back the rapture much longer and as this world continues to plummet for the time described in the Book of Revelation it may even cost you your head.
We will definitely be forced to choose between compromise and the painful will of God.
I don't say this to frighten you. I definitely don't say it to discourage you. I said to prepare you and to put your suffering of the past or even the present into a context so you can understand what and even appreciate what God is doing.
This is part of your bridal preparation.
Just like any other Modern bride in this country you have a right to say no to the marriage. You can refuse to go through the bridal preparation.
If you do refuse the painful will of God during this time-
You will be in danger of falling away from God and missing out on the rapture and not being able to attend the marriage supper of the lamb.
Choosing the painful will of God is all about the 3rd and last point-
III. The Death of Self Matt 12:24-26
24 Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. 25 Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.
In speaking to the crowd Jesus uses an agricultural example that everyone that was listening would understand regarding his purpose here on earth.
The only way that God can get the most benefit and most glory out of you and I is when we choose to die to self.
There is a huge difference between how the ancient people would show off a bride's beauty and how we do it today.
In today's world will use makeup to cover up perceived imperfections into extenuate those things that we call beautiful. In the ancient world they did the opposite- they would strip away everything that was considered to be an imperfection until the bride's natural beauty would shine forth.
If you remember from the book of Esther, Esther had to spend a year in beauty treatments before she could be presented to the King. During that time the beauty treatments were often uncomfortable and even painful, but it was to strip away all imperfections so that Which remained would show off the beauty that was underneath.
That is what choosing the painful will of God does for us it's strips away our imperfections so that what is left is a reflection of Jesus Christ.
And that is why Jesus compares it to a kernel of wheat falling to the ground and dying is being the only way that true growth happens.
Because only then will we receive the reward of harvest
IV. The Reward of Harvest Vs 24
But if it dies, it produces many seeds. 25 Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life
Jesus is very specific here And he does not mince words. The only way the church grows is through the death of self.
I have never seen a church split because too many people wanted to be like Jesus.
I have never seen a ministry blow up because someone was showing too much Christ likeness.
The limiting factor is always this- Someone is holding on tightly to their own rights and prerogatives.
And that is the complete opposite of what Jesus has called us too.
Our Lord told us to count the cost pick up our cross and follow him.
Jesus came to this earth to die. Shouldn't we do the same?
Because that is the only way we will see a harvest and that is what we are called to be workmen in the field of god's grace.
Will you choose the painful will of God for you if it means that others can be saved?
Prayer
Communion- celebrating the life of Him who showed us the way
Altar Call
