When it comes to a congregation listening to a sermon…
Illus: It reminds me of the three fellows that went hunting.
• A preacher,
• A lawyer,
• And a doctor.
They got out into the woods and got in their positions, and a deer ran out in the opening and all three of them shot at the deer at the same time.
Needless to say, they all stood over the deer, claiming it was their shot that killed the deer.
A game warden walked up and heard them arguing about who shot the deer.
• The game warden said, “You fellows go over there and stand, and I will examine the deer, and I will tell you who shot the deer in a few minutes.”
• After a few minutes, he walked over and said, “The preacher shot the deer!”
• The doctor and lawyer said, “How do you know the preacher shot the deer?”
• He said, “Because the bullet went in one ear and came out the other.”
Please, do not let this sermon go in one ear and out the other as I preach about Adonai.
In the scriptures we see that God has many names, but it is surprising how many folks attend church regularly do not know that God has many names.
In the English we refer to God as God, but in the Greek and Hebrew we discover God is translated into many different names for God that reveals God’s character.
Illus: The disciple Thomas uttered one of the most profound declarations of faith in the scriptures in John 20:24-31
Look at these verses…
Verses 24-25, Now Thomas (called Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. So, the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord!"
But he said to them, "Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it."
This is why we refer to Thomas as DOUBTING THOMAS!!!
He was famously known for insisting on seeing the wounds for himself, and while most think it was because he didn't believe the stories he was hearing.
When it comes to doubting makes me think about…
Illus: A couple who was going to get married…but unfortunately, they had a car crash, and they were both killed in the accident.
• They both stood before St Peter thinking maybe they could get married in heaven.
• So, they ask St. Peter if they could get married in heaven, and Peter responded” Well it’s quite a rare request, but let me see what I can do, it may take a while.”
• As the couple patiently waited for an answer wondering why it was taking so long to get an answer. During this long wait period they begin doubting whether they should have made such a request.
• Another month goes by and finally St Peter emerges from heaven and says “Yes, you can get married.”
• The couple says, “But what if it doesn’t work out, can we then get a divorce? "
• St Peter, red in the face and totally annoyed!!!
• The couple were shocked and scared. They say, “What’s wrong?”
• St Peter says…
• Listen, it took me 3 months to find a priest in heaven!
• Do you have any idea how long it will take to find a lawyer in heaven?”
Thomas was not with them when the Lord appeared to his disciples.
He missed out on a blessing but later when Adonai appeared to them again, he was there.
Look at verses 26-27 A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!" Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe."
Look at Thomas response after this experience, in verse 28 Thomas said, "My Lord and my God!"
For a Jew to call someone "My Lord and my God" is blasphemous under any circumstances but Thomas did just That. (John10:33)
• He started as a sceptic and a doubter but ended up making the most profound statement ever - a declaration of his faith!
• He used both words – Lord and God - were titles of deity in the OT. He knew what he was saying. He was worshipping Jesus!
• Notice, he was not even declaring Jesus as Lord and God, but as HIS Lord and God. It was very personal!
The confession was significant. Transformation has taken place. He recognized Jesus.
Faith changed him!!!
• We are not changed because we attend church.
• We are not changed because we tithe each Sunday.
• We are not changed because we are baptized.
• We are not changed because we come from a Christian family.
• We are changed because of our personal faith in the resurrected Lord and Saviour!
This is not just the cry of Thomas. It ought to be our cry too.
When I preached on Yahweh, I mention to you that the name Yahweh was so sacred they would not utter the name Yahweh.
Only once a year the high priest could mention it in the temple.
They had two names they substituted for Yahweh.
• Jehovah
• Adonai
Today in this sermon I will be preaching about Adonai.
First, let’s look at-
I. THE DEFINITION OF ADONAI
This is the name that is always translated LORD.
Sometimes it is used with other Hebrew names such as Yahweh.
For example, look at Genesis 15:2, where we read, "And Abram said, Lord (Adonai) GOD (Yahweh), what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus?"
In this verse of scripture. Abraham is desiring to pass on his inheritance to a family member.
He wasn’t able to do that, so he calls upon ADONAI.
But as He calls upon God, this is the first time we see the name Adonai used in the Scriptures.
WHY DID HE USE THE NAME ADONAI?
He used the name Adonai because this name incorporates the idea of Lordship in it.
One of the great needs in the church today is for folks to know Adonai as Lord of their life.
One of the things that made Saul of Tarsus (who later became the apostle Paul) become such a great servant of God, was that he recognized the Lordship of Christ immediately after his conversion.
Notice. He recognized His Lordship from the beginning of his conversion.
Look at Acts 9:1-6, we read “And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem. And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? And he said, Who art thou, Lord ? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou.”
Notice, Paul acknowledged Christ as Lord (Adonai) immediately after His conversion.
Some folks have been saved decades, and they have never yet been able to recognize Adonai Lordship.
The name Adonai signifies ownership or mastery.
That is:
• He is not only Elohim (Creator of the Universe),
• But the Word of God states He is also Adonai, the (Owner of the Universe).
Look at Psalm 50:10, “For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills.”
He lays claim that He is the owner of everything, and that includes every man, woman, boy and girl.
He is the CREATOR of…
• Everything
• Everyone
So naturally Adonai is the ownership of everything!!!
The Biblical principle of ownership involves recognizing that all that we have or will have ultimately belongs to God, and that He has entrusted us with these resources and responsibilities to be good steward for His glory.
Illus: When you buy a piece of land it is wise to do a TITLE SEARCH.
A lawyer will go to the courthouse and search who has owned this property you want to buy for 40 to 60 years to see if the title is clear for you to buy.
There is no need to go back any further than that because most likely those who owned it one time have died.
But you can do a TITLE SEARCH to see who owned the property that you owned for a thousand years and eventually it is going to reveal that God owned it.
Scripture teaches that God is the ultimate owner of the earth and all that is therein— not communism or governments—and that He desires individuals to be His stewards of His creation.
“The earth is the Lord’s, and all it contains, the world, and those who dwell in it” (Psalm 24:1).
HE IS LORD! The Greek word for Lord is “Kurios” (Pronounced as Koo'-ree-os) which means SUPREME IN AUTHORITY.
That is, ADONAI has supreme authority.
Illus: Now sometime folks have legal problems, and those problems are brought to the courts. After they have been to court and they feel that they have not received justice, if the case warrants it, they can take their case to the Supreme court. But once the Supreme court has heard their petition and ruled on it, they have to accept this verdict because you cannot go any higher than the Supreme Court.
Adonai is the SUPREME AUTHORITY of everything. When He makes a decision, it STANDS!
Lordship means two things…
1) Complete possession of all
2) Complete submission by all
Illus: We all need to be like a soldier in the army, that is, when we wake up in the morning and our feet hit the floor, we need to report to our commanding officer (Adonai) and say, “Private (___________) reporting for duty.”
Adonai means simply that HE IS MASTER, and we are His servants.
Illus: But you would never know that to hear some people on television that preach the false teaching that we can go before God, and we can DEMAND certain things.
They have reversed this situation; they are the MASTER and Christ is their SERVANT!
Why do they claim the Bible teaches we should do this.
They use Hebrews 4:16 to support this claim, which states “…Come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need”
• This verse of scripture means that God has made many promises in the Scriptures, and if we have met the conditions of these promises, we can confidently voice our prayers concerning the promises He has made
• BUT NEVER SHOULD WE COME BEFORE GOD MAKING DEMANDS, like some spoiled rotten child telling their parents what to do
Those who recognize His Lordship (as Adonai) are humble in their approach to God.
In this verse of scripture. Abraham is desiring to pass on his inheritance to a family member.
He calls upon Adoniah who is owns everything.
If you look at the whole context of this conversation, it seems as though Abraham initiated the conversation with God.
Once Abraham called upon Adonai…
Look at verse 33 again, we read, "And the LORD (Adonai) went his way, as soon as he had left communing with Abraham: and Abraham returned unto his place.”
But notice this:
• When God was finished with the conversation, the Bible says, “And the LORD went his way, as soon as he had left communing with Abraham…”
• Notice something else, when God was finished and left, the Bible says this about Abraham; “…and Abraham returned unto his place.”
Adonai had made his decision, there was no
need for anything else to be said.
Notice, God went His way, and Abraham went his way.
WHY IS IT SO DIFFICULT FOR US TO HUMBLE OURSELVES?
Because pride rises up in all of us, and we want to give the impression that we are gods, and we answer to no one!
But to do so, we only make fools of ourselves!
Illus: A young businessman had just started his own firm. He'd rented a beautiful office and had it furnished with antiques. Sitting there, he saw a man come into the outer office. Wishing to appear busy, the businessman picked up the phone and started to pretend he had a big deal working. He threw huge figures around and made giant commitments. Finally, he hung up and asked the visitor, "Can I help you?" The man said, "Sure. I've come to install the phone!"
We have looked at THE DEFINITION OF ADONAI, but also let’s look at-
II. THE DEMANDS OF ADONAI
If He is master of the universe, we must recognize HIS LORDSHIP.
HOW DO WE RECOGNIZE HIS LORDSHIP IN OUR LIFE?
We do it in many ways but let me show you in ways that we are familiar with recognizing HIS LORDSHIP:
A. IN OUR CHURCH ATTENDANCE
Did you know that the atheist does not attend church service to worship God? Of course you know this!
But did you know that many times there are those who say they believe in Him, and made Him LORD OF THEIR LIFE, but their church attendance reflects they have other gods in their life that is Lord of their life.
That is, their church attendance reveals it because:
• They do as they please
• Whenever they please
And they certainly do not recognize Him as Lord of their life, even though He does command us in Hebrews 10:25, “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.”
Probably more lies are told about church attendance than anything else. They are not called lies; they are called excuses!
Illus: One pastor got tired of all the flimsy excuses his congregation was giving as to why they were not faithfully attending. He jotted them all down and he announced, “Next Sunday, we are going to have a special ‘No Excuse Sunday.’"
• Cots will be placed in the foyer for those who say, "Sunday is my only day to sleep in."
• There will be a special section with lounge chairs for those who feel that our pews are too hard.
• Eye drops will be available for those with tired eyes from watching TV late Saturday night.
• We will have steel helmets for those who say, "The roof would cave in if I ever came to church."
• Blankets will be furnished for those who think the church is too cold, and fans for those who say it is too hot.
• Scorecards will be available for those who wish to list all the hypocrites present. A prominent space will be allotted at the top of the card for the cardholder to write his own name down first on that list.
• Relatives and friends will be in attendance for those who can't go to church and cook dinner, too.
• We will distribute "Stamp Out Stewardship" buttons for those that feel the church is always asking for money.
• One section will be devoted to trees and grass for those who like to seek God in nature.
• Doctors and nurses will be in attendance for those who plan to be sick on Sunday.
• The sanctuary will be decorated with both Christmas poinsettias and Easter lilies for those who never have seen the church without them.
• We will provide hearing aids for those who can't hear the preacher, and cotton for those who can!
Hope to see you there!
Listen, attending church is simply saying, I recognize God as master of this universe and my life:
• He has given us six days to take care of our business
• But on the Lord’s Day, it is my way of declaring to Adonai and everyone and that ADONAI, IS LORD OF MY LIFE!
Listen Christians, YOUR FAMILY, FRIENDS, AND NEIGHBORS can tell you recognize the Lordship of Christ by your church attendance?
Our church attendance reflects whether or not we recognize He is not only our CREATOR (Elohim) but He is also Lord of our life. HE IS ADONAI!
How else can we recognize HIS LORDSHIP?
B. IN OUR GIVING
Did you know that the atheist does not place the tithe in the offering plate each Sunday to support the work of God? Of course you know that!
But did you know that some who profess to call Him Lord (Adonai), also do not give the tithes that belong to Him.
Leviticus 27:30 And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the LORD'S: it is holy unto the LORD.
No, they take the tithes that belong to Adonai and spend them on themselves.
Even though the Bible clearly teaches that the tithe is the Lord’s, there are some who call Him Lord, yet will rob him week after week of His tithes.
Look at Malachi 3:8-10, we read, “Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.”
These are some strong words, God is going into name calling here, he is calling some people thieves!
PREACHER, ARE YOU CALLING ME A THIEF?
No! I am not doing that, but God’s Word says you are if you take the tithes that belong to Him and spend them on yourself.
Illus: This reminds me of the man who asked…
• “Why did you leave your last employment?”
• “The boss accused me of stealing a ten-dollar bill.”
• But why didn't you make him prove it?”
• “He did!”
Some may call Him Lord with their mouths, but their giving shows that they do not recognize the Lordship of ADONAI.
We recognize His Lordship IN OUR CHURCH ATTENDANCE, IN OUR GIVING, and -
C. IN OUR BIBLE READING
Did you know that you do not find the atheist taking the Word of God and reading it daily to find guidance? Of course you do!
Did you know that you can find some people in the church who call Him Lord, and they have time for their friends, television, and the newspaper, but they have no time to read the Word of God each day.
These folks do not recognize the LORDSHIP of Christ. They feel that they are the MASTER of their lives, not Him!
Every day they go from one bad decision to the next, making a mess of their life. They cannot figure out why their life is such a mess, and why they do not have the blessings of God.
Illus: They make me think of the woman consulting with her psychiatrist:
• She said: "I'm on the road a lot, and my clients are complaining that they can never reach me."
• Psychiatrist: "Don't you have a phone in your car?"
• Woman said: "That was a little too expensive, so I did the next best thing. I put a mailbox in my car.”
• Psychiatrist: "Uh ... How's that working?"
• Woman: "Actually, I haven't gotten any letters yet."
• Psychiatrist: "And why do you think that is?"
• Woman: "I figure it's because when I'm driving around, my zip code keeps changing."
Many folks are not getting much from God, and it is because they have not made Him Lord of their life.
They want Him as their Savior, to save them from Hell, but they do not want Him as Lord over their life.
When we acknowledge HIS DAY, HIS MONEY, and HIS WORD, we are saying He is Adonai, (Master of the Universe).
Does your life reflect that He is Lord over your life?
Conclusion:
I. THE DEFINITION OF ADONAI
II. THE DEMANDS OF ADONAI
You tube He is Lord by The Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir
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Sep 15, 2020
