Sermon A Sailing Upward Soul
- Last week’s message was about soaring with God.
- You have been given life to live, & you choose to live it.
- Now, whenever you’ve started something new, you realize I’ve got to do things a
little different with this new life.
- I told you last week about my life changing news about cruising, being allowed to
learn to walk again.
- Well, That comes with some complications.
- My right foot doesn’t bear weight like it used to.
- If I try bring my left foot forward at full length, I’m going to hit the floor.
- I have to walk with my right foot turned a little at an angle, because of too much
pressure on my foot/ankle.
- I made a choice that I would walk.
- I made a choice that I would soar!
- This time our soul is called a sailing upward soul.
- There are difficulties along our path, but they will not stop us!
1 Thessalonians 4:1-7
1 Furthermore then we beseech you, brethren, and exhort you by the Lord Jesus, that as ye have received of us how ye ought to walk and to please God, so ye would abound more and more.
2 For ye know what commandments we gave you by the Lord Jesus.
3 For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication:
4 That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour;
5 Not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which know not God:
6 That no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any matter: because that the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also have forewarned you and testified.
7 For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness.
- The Word Concupiscence stands for strong desire.
- Look at the list. A strong desire for Sin!
- God called us unto holiness, or to be set apart.
- God called us to be different/transformed from the world.
- Our upward soul draws us to want to put away the things we see as unholy.
- The end result, we’re closer to God. We have an upward Soul.
Prayer
> the backslider (Author unknown www.christianforum.com)
A backslider suddenly began attending church faithfully on Sunday mornings instead of going fishing. The pastor was highly gratified and told him, "How wonderful it makes me feel to see you at services with your good wife!"
"Well, Preacher," said the fisherman, "it's a matter of choice. I'd rather hear your sermon than hers."
- That’s kind of funny, but one thing you take away from the joke is, the fisherman
learned what was bad & chose what was good. Even against his own judgement.
- As a Christian, When we have a sailing soul, our soul is doing just that sailing.
- By the leading, & push of God we sail forward.
Romans 8:26-28
26 Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
27 And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.
28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
- The Spirit intercedes, groans, & searches our hearts, because He is the rudder that
steers this great ship called the temple of the Holy Spirit
- What I find intriguing, but also bewildering, is the fact that God will not force us to
do something, but at the same time He also will move us, lead us, & cause things
to happen to protect us, & even steer us in the right direction.
- Now the us, in that, is those who are His, Christians.
- Our sailing Soul faces seas of great waves & torrents that other ships could
not fare, but somehow we continue to sail.
Q- How Do you think that’s possible?
- God is divinely in control of all of His creation.
- God is omniscient, which means all knowing.
- When it comes to sailing a sea, with such immense waves, an unskilled sailor
would perish, but God knows where the waves will come from.
- Think back to Joseph’s life. Beloved by his father, but despised by his brothers.
- The brothers desired to kill him, but instead sold him to the Ishmaelites, who
were Midianite traders.
- He was sold to Potiphar, accused by his wife & jailed, forgotten by the
cupbearer (whom he had prophesied hope to).
- up until this time almost 13 years had passed from the time he was sold.
- Think of how big those waves were!
- In those moments we cry out, why, or where are you God, but He right there
directing the ship.
- Look at Joseph’s life,
- Sold into slavery in Egypt, but quickly rises to be Potiphar’s most trusted overseer
in his house.
- In prison, Once again the warden like Joseph, then trusts Joseph, so much that he
is put in charge of the prisoners, & the warden doesn’t worry about anything
under Joseph’s care.
Q- Do you see God steering the rudder through the waves?
- After 13 years, then Joseph becomes overseer of Egypt, second only to Pharaoh.
- As the History goes, because of Joseph, Egypt, & the Israelites were saved.
- It took a little more than 24 years before Joseph saw his father again, but here’s
the word, he did!
- The sailing upward soul is all about faith, because we know in the midst of the storm
He is there.
- I could only imagine the hurt in Joseph’s heart.
- Think of the way the ship would look after such strong waves, & yet Let’s read the
end of the chapter.
Genesis 50:15-21
15 And when Joseph's brethren saw that their father was dead, they said, Joseph will peradventure hate us, and will certainly requite us all the evil which we did unto him.
16 And they sent a messenger unto Joseph, saying, Thy father did command before he died, saying,
17 So shall ye say unto Joseph, Forgive, I pray thee now, the trespass of thy brethren, and their sin; for they did unto thee evil: and now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of thy father. And Joseph wept when they spake unto him.
18 And his brethren also went and fell down before his face; and they said, Behold, we be thy servants.
19 And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God?
20 But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.
21 Now therefore fear ye not: I will nourish you, and your little ones. And he comforted them, and spake kindly unto them.
- Joseph could look through the journey his ship had sailed, & could only say, God was
at the wheel.
- I only sailed the path that God led me through.
- Christians, we are Souls that are sailing to a destination that is sure.
- Joseph was going to see his family again, but it took 19 years before he saw his
brothers, & 24 before he saw his dad.
- There was no anger in Joseph’s eyes when he first saw them, only great joy.
- That’s our destination, great joy, & reunion!
- Listen,
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
13 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.
16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words.
- There’s our comfort p, our ship has sailed it’s course, & now it has arrived at it’s
destination.
- This life with it’s ups, & downs is done. Now there is no more sea, no turbulence,
no waves.
- Our journey that began with sinking, led to being satisfied, singing, soaring, &
now we’re sailing.
- We’re not sailing towards the temporary destinations, but we’re sailing
towards our eternal destination.
- Here’s the thing I want to close with though,
* You only sail because you choose to!
> The Fence Man (Author unknown www.varietyreading.carlsguide.com)
There was a large group of people gathered. On one side of the group stood a man, Jesus. On the other side stood another, Satan. Seperating them was a fence running through the group. The scene set, both Jesus and Satan began calling to people in the group. One by one, each having made up his or her own mind, went to either Jesus or Satan. This kept going for a time. Soon enough, Jesus had gathered around him a group of people from the larger crowd, as did Satan.
One man joined neither group. He climbed the fence that was there and sat on it. Jesus and his people left and disappeared, and so too did Satan and his people. The man on the fence sat alone. As this man sat, Satan came back, looking for something which he appeared to have lost. The man said, "Have you lost something?" Satan looked straight at him and replied, "No, there you are. Come with me." The man said, "But I sat on the fence. I chose neither you nor him." Satan said, "That's okay; I own the fence."
"Whoever is not with me is against me." - Jesus in Matthew 12:30
- It’s so easy to sit on the fence, & not do anything.
- Here’s the thing though, you’ll never sail if you don’t let Him on the ship!
