Opening Video: Memorial Day
Memorial Day – A day to remember those who gave their lives for the cause of peace in a time of war.
Series: Find Joy in the Journey
Scripture Text: Romans 15:13 “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
Introduction;
Quote from Chuck Swindoll’s book “Laugh Again”: “I know of no greater need today than the need for joy. Unexplainable, contagious joy. Outrageous joy. When that kind of joy comes aboard our ship of life, it brings good things with it-like enthusiasm for life, determination to hang in there, and a strong desire to be of encouragement to others. Such qualities make our voyage bearable when we hit the open seas and encounter high waves of hardship that tend to demoralize and paralyze. There is nothing better than a joyful attitude when we face the challenges life throws at us” (Swindoll, page 19).
Studying about joy in Scripture, looking at verses which speak of joy, helps build an understanding of how to put ourselves in places where it is possible to find and maintain an attitude of joy in our journey of life. This has been our quest for this year!
Sermon; Finding joy in the journey through war and peace!
Thesis: Joy can be discovered and embraced through times or war and peace. We just have to seek the one who brings perfect peace even in the midst of war.
Introduction:
The Personnel Journal reported this incredible statistic: since the beginning of recorded history, the entire world has been at peace less than eight percent of the time! In its study, the periodical discovered that of 3530 years of recorded history, only 286 years saw peace. Moreover, in excess of 8000 peace treaties were made--and broken.
Moody Bible Institute, Today In The Word, June, 1988, p.33.
Society of International Law, in London, states the same statistic that during the last 4,000 years there have been only 268 years of peace in spite of good peace treaties. In the last 3 centuries there have been 286 wars on the continent of Europe alone.
J.K. Laney, Marching Orders, p 50.
Ronald Reagan stated, “Peace is not the absence of conflict, it is the ability to handle conflict by peaceful means.”
My title today comes from the famous book “War and Peace” written by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy. It is regarded as a central work of world literature and one of Tolstoy's finest literary achievements.
The novel chronicles the history of the French invasion of Russia and the impact of the Napoleonic era on Tsarist society through the stories of five Russian aristocratic families. The novel was first published in its entirety in 1869.
Tolstoy said War and Peace is "not a novel, even less is it a poem, and still less a historical chronicle." Large sections, especially the later chapters, are a philosophical discussion rather than narrative. Tolstoy also said that the best Russian literature does not conform to standards and hence hesitated to call War and Peace a novel. The Encyclopedia Britannica states: "It can be argued that no single English novel attains the universality of the Russian writer Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace".
Quotes from War and Peace:
“Nothing is so necessary for a young man as the company of intelligent women.” ...
“We can know only that we know nothing. And that is the highest degree of human wisdom.”
“Everything depends on upbringing. ”
“A battle is won by him who is firmly resolved to win it.”
“If everyone fought for their own convictions there would be no war.”
“You can love a person dear to you with a human love, but an enemy can only be loved with divine love.”
“Man cannot possess anything as long as he fears death. But to him who does not fear it, everything belongs. If there was no suffering, man would not know his limits, would not know himself. ”
“It's all God's will: you can die in your sleep, and God can spare you in battle.”
“They say: sufferings are misfortunes," said Pierre. 'But if at once this minute, I was asked, would I remain what I was before I was taken prisoner, or go through it all again, I should say, for God's sake let me rather be a prisoner and eat horseflesh again. We imagine that as soon as we are torn out of our habitual path all is over, but it is only the beginning of something new and good. As long as there is life, there is happiness. There is a great deal, a great deal before us.”
“Life is everything. Life is God. Everything shifts and moves, and this movement is God. And while there is life, there is delight in the self-awareness of the divinity. To love life is to love God. The hardest and most blissful thing is to love this life in one's suffering, in the guiltlessness of suffering.”
“Everything comes in time to him who knows how to wait . . . there is nothing stronger than these two: patience and time, they will do it all.”
? Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace
The Bible talks about life – the seasons of life and seasons of time – Solomon who was considered the wisest man to have ever lived wrote the book of Ecclesiastes at the end of his life – he was observing his life and other people’s lives around him. He observed and looked to see who felt they were doing something meaningful with their lives, people who were living a life filled with peace and contentment – he saw a whole lot of meaninglessness in people’s lives. He concluded it was impossible to find peace and contentment in stuff, people, jobs, ideals and so on – He discovered peace and contentment was linked to only one thing – it applies to all seasons of life – he knew that life was not stagnant but progressing forward in its journey and seasons will change on the path of life. He observed the following:
Scripture: Ecclesiastes 3:1-8:
1There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven:
2a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build,
4a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
6a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.
Yes, even wise Solomon knew there was a time for everything – there was a timeframe placed on all things related to life – life and death and war and peace – now these two seem to be at odds with each other in life – especially as we journey through life. Many believe you cannot have war and peace at the same time - one fights to take the other one – but they have existed side by side throughout history and the bible points this out for all to take notice.
Solomon in his search for meaning and for peace and fulfillment gets to the end of the book and writes this phrase, it is found in Ecc. 12:13-14: 13Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole ‹duty› of man. 14For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.
His conclusion after his careful observation – his end of life reflection on the meaning of life – was this - a life filled with peace and contentment was only found in God – He notes this in Ecc. 11: 7-10 he says to remember your Creator while you are young so you do not waste your life – life will be filled with light and darkness, and youth and vigor will pass away and what is left in the end is not a healthy young body but the ways and condition of your heart. He re-emphasizes in chapter 12 to remember God – don’t neglect Him, forget Him, ignore Him or reject Him – let Him be a part of your whole life and you will find a life filled with peace, contentment and eternal meaning.
So Solomon concludes that life is and will be filled with contrasts – War and Peace – birth and death – times to build and times to tear down – sickness and health but with a connection to God you can have that inner peace of fulfillment and peace in life – in spite of the season of life!
Story Illustration (Seeking a picture of perfect peace):
Long ago a man sought the perfect picture of peace. Not finding one that satisfied, he announced a contest to produce this masterpiece. The challenge stirred the imagination of artists everywhere, and paintings arrived from far and wide. Finally the great day of revelation arrived. The judges uncovered one peaceful scene after another, while the viewers clapped and cheered.
The tensions grew. Only two pictures remained veiled.
As a judge pulled the cover from one, a hush fell over the crowd.
A mirror-smooth lake reflected lacy, green birches under the soft blush of the evening sky. Along the grassy shore, a flock of sheep grazed undisturbed. Surely this was the winner.
The man with the vision uncovered the second painting himself, and the crowd gasped in surprise. Could this be peace?
A tumultuous waterfall cascaded down a rocky precipice; the crowd could almost feel its cold, penetrating spray. Stormy-gray clouds threatened to explode with lightning, wind and rain. In the midst of the thundering noises and bitter chill, a spindly tree clung to the rocks at the edge of the falls. One of its branches reached out in front of the torrential waters as if foolishly seeking to experience its full power.
A little bird had built a nest in the elbow of that branch. Content and undisturbed in her stormy surroundings, she rested on her eggs. With her eyes closed and her wings ready to cover her little ones, she manifested peace that transcends all earthly turmoil. (From Berit Kjos, A Wardrobe from the King, pp. 45-46.)
Charles Stanley’s states the following from his book Finding Peace:
“How can we experience Christ’s peace?” (A perfect peace even in a season of turmoil) He states, “We must believe that He is in control of our lives and our circumstances. Otherwise, we will try to take control, and there is conflict in that struggle. We must believe that Christ’s offer of peace is real and be willing to accept it in spite of our feelings. We must fully surrender our lives—mind, will, and emotions—to Jesus as our Lord. This includes yielding and conforming our character, conversation, and conduct to His will.”
We discovered over the last few weeks that Jesus promised us peace in this life. He stated, "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." (John 16:33).
T.S. – So today I want to look at 4 essential beliefs we need to have in the journey of life about God the Father – the Son and the Holy Spirit to have a peaceful heart.
1. We must believe and understand God is sovereign to maintain a peaceful heart:
A. Who do you think is in control of your life?
a. The President of the United States?
b. The Senate?
c. The terrorist?
d. You?
e. Your spouse?
f. Or do you believe God is in charge of your life as a believer?
i. Stanley states, “God has never been out of control over His creation for one fraction of a second since the beginning of time.” (page 42).
1. Do you believe this?
ii. Stanley adds, “We may not completely understand God’s purposes, but we can be assured of this-God is still in control” (page 42).
iii. He goes on to make the connection of how this belief in God is connected to our inner peace, “Recognizing and accepting the truth that God is sovereign over absolutely everything is vital for your inner peace” (page 43).
B. The word sovereign means to be in complete control of something. God is sovereign, which means He is in complete control of everything in the whole universe. God created the universe and everything in it (see Genesis 1:1), and there is nothing that ever happens outside of His control.
a. Reference: www.gqkidz.org/what-does-it-mean-that-God-is-sovereign.html
C. God knows everything (1 John 3:20). He knows not only the minutest details of our lives but those of everything around us, for He mentions even knowing when a sparrow falls or when we lose a single hair (Matthew 10:29-30). Not only does God know everything that will occur until the end of history itself (Isaiah 46:9-10), but He also knows our very thoughts, even before we speak forth (Psalm 139:4). He knows our hearts from afar; He even saw us in the womb (Psalm 139:1-3, 15-16). Solomon expresses this truth perfectly when he says, “For you, you only, know the hearts of all the children of mankind” (1 Kings 8:39).
a. From Gotquestions.org - https://www.gotquestions.org/God-omniscient.html
D. I watched this movie this week again and was reminded of the sovereignty of God
a. Illustration: The Trailer for Hacksaw Ridge.
b. Share about the movie Hacksaw Ridge and it’s message of the Sovereignty of God.
i. The Overview: Hacksaw Ridge is a 2016 biographical war drama film directed by Mel Gibson and written by Andrew Knight and Robert Schenkkan, based on the 2004 documentary The Conscientious Objector. The film focuses on the World War II experiences of Desmond Doss, an American pacifist combat medic who, as a Seventh-day Adventist Christian, refused to carry or use a weapon or firearm of any kind. Doss became the first conscientious objector to be awarded the Medal of Honor, for service above and beyond the call of duty during the Battle of Okinawa.
ii. Desmond Doss HACKSAW RIDGE is the extraordinary true story of Desmond Doss who, in Okinawa during the bloodiest battle of WWII, saved 75 men without firing or carrying a gun. He was the only American soldier in WWII to fight on the front lines without a weapon, as he believed that while the war was justified, killing was nevertheless wrong. As an army medic, he single-handedly evacuated the wounded from behind enemy lines, braved fire while tending to soldiers and was wounded by a grenade and hit by snipers.
iii. The perspective: The skeptics the persecutors of this man called what he did that night a miracle – they all came to believe that God was with Desmond – the next day they would not go back to take the ridge without him – it was an absolute miracle done by God through him for his faithfulness to stand by his conviction not to bear arms as his conscience convicted him to not do it - God rewarded him in the midst of battle with a miracle to save 75 men’s lives.
E. Application: I challenge you this week to read Psalm 91 – to understand and know God is your protector. He is the one looking over your life – from minute to minute – hour to hour – day to day – month to month – year to year. He is in charge of you if you belong to His family! When we really believe this - we will cultivate a peaceful heart in our journey of life.
a. Reference the stories from “Insanity of God.”
i. Dimitri
ii. Tavian
1. Do you think that they believed God was sovereign?
2. We need to believe and understand God is omnipresent to maintain a peaceful heart:
A. Are you spiritually sensitive to God’s presence in your life each day?
a. Do you believe God is with you every day – every moment of your life?
i. “The believer in Christ has become the inner sanctum of God the Holy Spirit, as the believer has been sanctified and forgiven by the blood of Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:7). The believer in Christ becomes the habitation of the Holy Spirit of God. In fact, Scripture also says that the believer is indwelt spiritually by Christ (Colossians 1:27) and by God the Father (1 John 4:15)—the Trinity is involved.”
1. This quote from https://www.gotquestions.org/indwelling-of-the-Holy-Spirit.html
B. To say God is omnipresent means He is present everywhere with His whole Being at all times. The prefix omni- comes from the Latin word meaning "all.". Many religions believe God is everywhere at one time. However, the Bible specifically teaches that God is both everywhere at once and transcendent (above all) or outside of His creation.
a. Is God omnipresent? What does it mean to be omnipresent?
i. See www.compellingtruth.org/God-omnipresent.html
C. Desmond Doss said he knew God was with him on that bloody ridge – in the midst of war – he said after he saved each man he then asked God to give him one more person to save – He asked for strength to save one more life – he even rescued live Japanese from that ridge that faithful night as well.
a. Do you believe God is everywhere?
b. That He is with you?
c. If you do you will discover this inner peace!
i. Reference the following books which share story on story of God’s presence touching people’s hearts in times of war:
1. Finding God’s Peace in Perilous Times by Tyndale.
2. Miracles of The American Revolution by Larkin Spivey
3. One Nation Under God by James P. Moore Jr.
3. We must believe and understand God is omniscient to maintain a peaceful heart:
A. To say God is omniscient is to say that God knows all things or has all knowledge. As Creator of the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1), there is nothing made that He has not known (John 1:3). It's safe to say that Steve Jobs knew how computers work; in the same way, God knows how the universe works and what you may need at a specific time.
a. Do you believe this about God? Do you believe God knows what you need? When you need it? Do you believe he is your Provider?
b. Charles Stanley States, “From cover to cover, the Bible has a clear message that God is the One who provides for all your needs. No need is to massive, too problematic, or too severe for Jesus to meet it! The Bible tells us: “Those who seek the Lord shall not lack any good thing” (Psalm 34:10).
c. We need to never forget that God knows what we need – see the following stories from the Bible:
1. God sent manna to feed a million people who were wandering in the wilderness – and he did it for decades see Exodus 16:35.
2. God brought forth water from a rock to quench the thirst of His people in Exodus 17:6.
3. God sent ravens with food to feed Elijah in the wilderness in a time of drought and famine in 1 Kings 17:4-6.
4. Jesus multiplies a boys sack lunch of bread and fish to feed 1,000’s of people in Matthew 14:14-21.
d. Is God omniscient? What does it mean to be omniscient? To see more go to www.compellingtruth.org/God-omniscient.html but here is a few of their thoughts:
1. They state, “Scripture is clear that God is omniscient. In 1 John 3:20 we read, "God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything." Further, God knows everything about us as individuals. Jesus taught God's concern for us by saying He knows the exact number of hairs on our head (Matthew 10:29-30). No matter how many times we comb our hair, God is not thrown off count.”
2. First Kings 8:39 speaks of God knowing our thoughts: "for you, you only, know the hearts of all the children of mankind." There is no way to "keep a secret" from God.
3. God's omniscience includes knowledge of the future. He knows "the end from the beginning" (Isaiah 46:10). In fact, predictive knowledge is unique to God; detailed, accurate prophecy is His specialty. Our Lord issues this challenge to false gods: "declare to us the things to come, tell us what the future holds, so we may know that you are gods" (Isaiah 41:22-23 NIV). Any god worth its salt must know the future, but the Baals, Dagons, and Molechs of this world fail miserably in this regard.
4. A. W. Tozer wrote of God's omniscience, "Because God knows all things perfectly, He knows no thing better than any other thing, but all things equally well. He never discovers anything, He is never surprised, never amazed. He never wonders about anything nor (except when drawing men out for their own good) does He seek information or ask questions." (A. W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy, pp. 61-62).
B. We need to believe and understand God has omniscience to maintain a peaceful heart:
a. Many people believe in the omniscience or all-knowing power of God. Omniscience comes from the Latin omnis meaning "all" and scientia meaning "knowledge.". Omniscience is a state of possessing all the knowledge there is — pretty impressive.
b. In other word’s our hearts should be at peace knowing God knows more than the internet and he knows how to use knowledge rightly and correctly! This should give us inner peace!
c. The Apostle Paul wrote, “Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God” (2 Cor. 3:5).
4. We must believe and understand God is omnipotent to maintain a peaceful heart:
A. Who has the most power in this world, this universe?
a. The Bible says it’s God – not the Devil, not kings or presidents or even us – it’s him!
b. Jesus showed this by doing miracles:
i. He clamed the storm on the sea.
ii. He cast out demonic spirits from people.
iii. He healed lepers.
iv. He healed the blind.
v. Do I need to keep adding more or do you believe God – Jesus have the power!
c. Desmond Doss knew this that’s why he prayed the Lord would give him one more!
i. He did not have the power but the Lord did!
B. Question: "What does it mean that God is omnipotent?". Answer: The word omnipotent comes from omni- meaning “all” and potent meaning “power.” As with the attributes of omniscience and omnipresence, it follows that, if God is infinite, and if He is sovereign, which we know He is, then He must also be omnipotent.
a. What does it mean that God is omnipotent? - GotQuestions.org
i. www.gotquestions.org/God-omnipotent.html
Reflection from teaching above: Having the right view of God the Father, Jesus the Son and the Holy Spirit will implant within in us a peace that passes all understanding and inner strength that will rise up in the midst of chaos and give us peace. The peace we are talking about comes from a relationship with Jesus and it is a divine gift from Heaven to all who believe.
Charles Stanley reminds us: “Having Christ’s peace does not mean that we will never have any trouble, suffer pain or illness, or feel afraid. But whenever these experiences come our way, we will be able to respond with absolute confidence and certainty in the sufficiency of Christ. He is adequate for every situation and will always carry us through it. In fact, sometimes the most difficult, painful, and trying circumstances can become the seedbed for the awesome peace God gives to us in those moments.”
Conclusion:
As we wrap our thought on war and peace I am reminded of something Mother Teresa said:
Illustration: Mother Teresa accepted the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979 and here are some of her comments.
"I was once asked why I don't participate in anti-war demonstrations. I said that I will never do that, but as soon as you have a pro-peace rally, I'll be there." - Mother Teresa
"Everybody today seems to be in such a terrible rush, anxious for greater developments and greater riches and so on, so that children have very little time for their parents. Parents have very little time for each other, and in the home begins the disruption of peace of the world." - Mother Teresa
"Please choose the way of peace.. In the short term there may be winners and losers in this war that we all dread. But that never can, nor never will justify the suffering, pain and loss of life your weapons will cause." - Mother Teresa
"I see God in every human being. When I wash the leper's wounds, I feel I am nursing the Lord himself. Is it not a beautiful experience?" - Mother Teresa
"No matter who says what, you should accept it with a smile and do your own work." - Mother Teresa
Background on Nobel Peace Prize summary!
On 27 November 1895, Alfred Nobel signed his last will and testament, giving the largest share of his fortune to a series of prizes, the Nobel Prizes. As described in Nobel's will, one part was dedicated to "the person who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses".
96 Nobel Peace Prizes have been awarded since 1901. It was not awarded on 19 occasions: in 1914-1916, 1918, 1923, 1924, 1928, 1932, 1939-1943, 1948, 1955-1956, 1966-1967 and 1972.
Why were the Peace Prizes not awarded in those years? In the statutes of the Nobel Foundation it says: "If none of the works under consideration is found to be of the importance indicated in the first paragraph, the prize money shall be reserved until the following year. If, even then, the prize cannot be awarded, the amount shall be added to the Foundation's restricted funds." During World War I and II, fewer Nobel Prizes were awarded.
Charles Stanley challenges us to reflect on peace: RESPONSE
“Is your life characterized more by peace or anxiety? What situations most commonly rob you of peace? Where is your focus in those times? Is it on yourself, others, circumstances, the unknowable future, or Christ? What is your level of peace when you are trusting God versus when you are trying to control your life or the lives of others? Who is more qualified to be the one in charge—you or God?”
What do we need to know?
Answer: We need to know that what we believe about God will determine our inner peace level! Having a right view of God will give us peace even in the midst of chaos and it will help us be free from regret, anxiety and fear.
Why do they need to know this?
Answer: If you don’t know the truth about God the Devil will lie to you about God and rob you of joy and peace in this life.
What do we need to do?
Answer: You need to believe and learn more about God!
Charles Stanley states on page 70 this, “Why am I placing great importance on what you believe about God and His relationship to you?
• Because if you truly believe God is not sovereign…
• If you don’t believe God desires to provide fully for you-materially, physically, emotionally, spiritually…
• If you don’t believe God considers you to be worthy and lovable…
• If you don’t believe God cares about your loneliness…
• If you don’t believe God has a plan for your fulfillment and deep satisfaction…
YOU are never going to trust God to do what He wants to do for you!
