What we need to start growing deep
11 Has any nation ever exchanged its gods for another god, even though its gods are nothing? Yet my people have exchanged their glorious God for worthless idols! 12 The heavens are shocked at such a thing and shrink back in horror and dismay, says the LORD. 13 For my people have done two evil things: They have forsaken me—the fountain of living water. And they have dug for themselves cracked cisterns that can hold no water at all!
Jer.2:11-13 (NLT)
Very simply, what we need to grow deep with God is just plain old calling a spade, a spade! It is to take responsibility for the mess we find ourselves in. It is to say we thought we knew better and beg for mercy from a God who wipes us out, by just saying the word. It is the good old way of what Jesus called “blessed are the poor in heart, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” To grow deep with God we got to see sin for what it really is.
There is an old saying that says "to err is human, to forgive is divine." While "to err is human" is a very fair assessment, but it is perhaps more human to make excuses for those errors. An auto insurance company released a list of actual accident reports they had received from policyholders. Here is their “top ten” list of excuses people came up with for their accidents.
1. An invisible car came out of nowhere, struck my car, and vanished.
2. The other car collided with mine without warning me of its intention.
3. I had been driving my car for 40 years when I fell asleep at the wheel and had the accident.
4. As I reached an intersection, a hedge sprang up, obscuring my vision.
5. I pulled away from the side of the road, glanced at my mother-in- law, and headed over the embankment.
6. The pedestrian had no idea which direction to go, so I ran over him.
7. The telephone pole was approaching fast. I attempted to swerve out of its path when it struck my front end.
8. The guy was all over the road. I had to swerve a number of times before I hit him.
9. I thought my window was down, but I found it was up when I put my head through it.
10. The indirect cause of this accident was a little guy in a small car with a big mouth.
It’s always someone else’s fault, isn’t it? That’s the beauty of excuses: they take the blame off ourselves and put it onto someone or something else, where it really belongs? Sin? What Me? Human nature is a pretty funny thing, isn’t it? Why do we do the things we do? Why is humanity the way it is? Why does human nature produce such contradictions: in one case it is the "human" thing to be very compassionate and giving and in the next case it seems everything within us compels us to be self-centered even to the detriment and pain of others? For instance, we want to bomb Afghanistan to smithereens for the horror of WTC attacks and next we want to send food.
People are driven to action by many different motives. Perhaps u have seen many people who are driven by demands. These are the expectations or requirements that others place on them such as our parents. I Grew up in an atmosphere where u’ll feel back of the hand if don’t live it to it. Don’t get a perfect score in school exams, whamo! Like me, as a school kid, these people are always trying to live up or measure up to the standards someone else has placed on them. These people are driven to please. But does your heart really tell that’s the way to live, never sensing if what u do is quite enuff? Is that the way to grow deep?
Some people are driven by their sense of duty, right? These are self- determined expectations and standards. The Pharisees portrayed in NT good example. Lk.11:37 ff. (NLT) tells story how the Pharisees driven by sense of duty:
As Jesus was speaking, one of the Pharisees invited him home for a meal. So he went in and took his place at the table. 38 His host was amazed to see that he sat down to eat without first performing the ceremonial washing required by Jewish custom. 39 Then the Lord said to him, “You Pharisees are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are still filthy—full of greed and wickedness! 40 Fools! Didn’t God make the inside as well as the outside? 41 So give to the needy what you greedily possess, and you will be clean all over.
42 “But how terrible it will be for you Pharisees! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest part of your income, but you completely forget about justice and the love of God. You should tithe, yes, but you should not leave undone the more important things. These people are driven to perform. Does your heart say I wanna be like these folks, driven to perform? Is this what God really want out of me?
Others are driven by their despair. This is where a person has allowed a painful experience to shape and color their entire view of life. These people are driven to protect themselves and avoid further pain. Driven by their pain, every step taken is manipulative? Sense that this is how you grow deep with God?
Most people, however, are driven by their desires. This attitude is summed up in the slogan, "If it feels good, do it." It is also the result of the worldview that humans are merely animals and, therefore, we have no choice but to follow and fulfill those inner drives, urges and passions. In other words, we are slaves to our nature, that internal set of drives, presuppositions, attitudes, and desires. But are we animals? I think something inside of us protest against such a notion. We sense there is something that is dignified about us, isn’t there? I am man and I am woman, hear me roar! There must be, we can’t just be here for no other reason.
Interestingly, the Bible also teaches that humans are naturally slaves to their nature. However, it is not because we are no different than animals. If you would, look in the Bible right from Genesis 1 it teaches us that each and every person is hand-crafted, hand made, in a beautiful design by God. We are each created in the image of God, which differentiates us from all other created things, from animals. However, that image of God, that privilege of creation, is marred and damaged because of sin. Sin is, in essence, the failure or refusal of human beings to live the life intended for them by God their creator. God intended for us to be satisfied in him, depend on Him, walk with Him in love and in unison with His Spirit. But man and woman think they know what works better. Using the imagery of water and thirst - Jer. Tells us sin is now the choice of humans in solving the problem of thirst, we choose to dig our own cisterns, cracked cisterns, and forsaking the source of pure spring water. There is an Assumption of Thirst! As humans we thirst, we need water. We created to depend on water. But water is lacking, so we go and dig our own cisterns or wells, problem is the wells are broken, they hold no water. Sin defined by Jer. not by the condition of thirst, but our refusal to come to God to drink and be satisfied. Sin is the choice to trust our own devices, what we control, by getting the old shovel and start digging. We choose by our own volition a startegy to figure out life, to stay alive without God, i.e. ending up in digging a cracked cistern, the well that is broken and that holds no water. Figuring that this will satisfy thirst.
It is because of sin that human beings act alone without God, we become like animals, being unable to control urges, desires and passions. The thirst drives people do crazy things. A pastor used to say, "Sin is that which dehumanizes us." The great Christian thinker, Augustine, said, "Sin comes when we take a perfectly natural desire or longing or ambition (thirst) and try desperately to fulfill it without God. Not only is it sin, it is a perverse distortion of the image of the Creator in us. All these good things, and all our security, are rightly found only and completely in him."
That is the hope that God offers us.
Jer.2:13
11 Has any nation ever exchanged its gods for another god, even though its gods are nothing? Yet my people have exchanged their glorious God for worthless idols! 12 The heavens are shocked at such a thing and shrink back in horror and dismay, says the LORD. 13 For my people have done two evil things: They have forsaken me—the fountain of living water. And they have dug for themselves cracked cisterns that can hold no water at all!
"My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water.
We can be set free. We do not have to be slaves to our nature. We can have a new nature. God promises us a new power to overcome those evil, and ultimately self- destructive natural desires. John 7:37-39 (NLT)
37 On the last day, the climax of the festival, Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, “If you are thirsty, come to me! 38 If you believe in me, come and drink! For the Scriptures declare that rivers of living water will flow out from within.” 39 (When he said “living water,” he was speaking of the Spirit, who would be given to everyone believing in him. But the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet entered into his glory.)
And, with God’s Holy Spirit, that power is within us. The key to overcoming our nature, to growing deep, is to live a Spirit-Driven life. And, just what is a Spirit-Driven life? The Apostle Paul explains it like this in Galatians 5:16-23: "I advise you to live according to your new life in the Holy Spirit. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The old sinful nature loves to do evil, which is just opposite from what the Holy Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are opposite from what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, and you choices are never free from this conflict. But when you are directed by the Holy Spirit, you are no longer subject to the law. When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, your lives will produce these evil results: sexual immorality, impure thoughts, eagerness for lustful pleasure, idolatry, participation in demonic activities , hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, divisions, the feeling that everyone is wrong except those in your own little group, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other kinds of sin. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God. But when the Holy Spirit controls our lives, he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control."
An older translation of the Bible translates "live by the Spirit" as "walk in the Spirit." I really like that imagery. To "walk in the Spirit" means to have your daily course of action, your lifestyle, be guided by the Holy Spirit. Bro. Lawrence, call this the practice of presence of God! For me, the image invokes the picture of the Holy Spirit being my "seeing eye dog" whom I trust to guide me safely each step of the way.
Now, in order for our life to be directed by the Holy Spirit, we must first have the Holy Spirit. The Bible promises that every child of God has the Holy Spirit [Romans 8:14-17]. 2 Corinthians 1:21-22 teaches, "Remember, God is the One who makes you and us strong in Christ. God made us his chosen people. He put his mark on us to show that we are his, and he put his Spirit in our hearts to be a guarantee for all he has promised."
Toy story: Andy mark on him, You are not your own you were bought with a price!
Acts 2:38 says, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." If you believe in your heart that Jesus Christ is God’s Son who died for your sins on the cross and rose from the dead, if you have turned the direction of your life over to His leading, if you have confessed with your mouth that you believe, if you have been baptized then you have the Holy Spirit within you.
That’s God’s promise. That is God’s power working in you, even when you are not aware of Him or don’t feel Him. The Bible says that the Holy Spirit even speaks to God on our behalf when we just don’t have the words [Romans 8:26,27]. The lifestyle that comes from the Holy Spirit stands in direct contrast to the lifestyle that comes from giving in to our natural selves. Paul admits that it is a war. He bluntly admits it is not going to be easy. He himself struggled intensely if u read Roman 7 in the Bible. So, what is the benefit of having the Holy Spirit? If it is still going to be a struggle, if we are still going to fail, if our human nature is going to win out far too often, what is the point? What is the benefit? If it doesn’t make a difference, is it even real?
Here’s the point: Without the Holy Spirit and the power from God He provides in our lives, we can’t grow deep, the only weapon we have to fight against our sinful nature is the law: that Old Testament code, that list of what is right and what is wrong. The problem with the law is that, even if we obey, it cannot instill motivation or convince the heart or the mind. It is just like going through the motions of a marriage, but not having genuine love for one another. Without that love, the motions are meaningless.
Derrick was a strong-willed, rebellious third grader who was always getting in trouble with his teacher. One day Derrick could not stay in his seat and was constantly standing up and walking around. After numerous warnings and threats, the teacher finally told Derrick that if he didn’t sit down, he would not get to go to recess. Derrick slumped into his seat. The teacher walked over and said, "Thank you for listening to me and sitting down." Derrick replied, "I may be sitting on the outside, but I’m standing on the inside." You see, the law imposes rather than inspires. And, that inspiration is what we receive from the Holy Spirit, if we yield to Him rather than our nature. So it calls for total surrender, it calls for dying to the self, it calls for following Jesus, being yielded so much, you admit, you are poor in Spirit, you mourn for the lack of real spirituality, then God can fill you. O Blessed are u are when u are meek, not in control, God is, realize u don’t have what it takes to be fully male and female, and you shall inherit the earth.
A little five-year-old girl had disobeyed her mother and was been sent to her room. After a few minutes, her mom went in to talk with her about what she had done. Teary-eyed, she asked, "Why do we do wrong things, Mommy?" "Sometimes the devil tells us to do something wrong," the mom replied, "and we listen to him. We need to listen to God instead." To which the little girl sobbed, "But God doesn’t talk loud enough!"
With the Holy Spirit, we have an internal warrior fighting on our behalf to help us live more fully how God would have us to live. Paul says in Galatians 5:18, "If you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law." One person has said, "The Spirit described in this context is a living reality, not a retired author. The Spirit was sent by God into our hearts, not onto our library shelves." Instead of this law that is imposed upon us to try to control the "acts of the sinful nature" or "works of the flesh", we instead have the Holy Spirit, that once planted within us, begins producing a fruit that has some incredible qualities. By the way, did you notice the contrast between the terms "acts", which requires work, attention, and intentionality and "fruit", which indicates a natural, progressing outgrowth of that which is planted?
So can I share with you, if you truly want God to lead you, to touch you, to grow you, admit you are thirsty! God does not chastise us for being thirsty, for longing, for sensing something is missing. Can you hear Jesus inviting you, “If you are thirsty, come to me! 38 If you believe in me, come and drink! For the Scriptures declare that rivers of living water will flow out from within.” He does not hide from us, when we admit our thirst, in fact He said come and find satisfaction, come quench your thirsty souls.
Can I also share with you that what God is incensed about is not you, but what you do with your thirst. Finding your own working strategies, not matter how dysfunctional it is, you trust something you see more than you trust Him whom u cannot see. Israel trusted in gods they can touch, feel and see. But they are dysfunctional, they don’t really work, “are nothing.” God is incensed, angry with such stupidity, disgusted, appalled, hear how Jer. Said it
11 Has any nation ever exchanged its gods for another god, even though its gods are nothing? Yet my people have exchanged their glorious God for worthless idols! 12 The heavens are shocked at such a thing and shrink back in horror and dismay, says the LORD
Hear this, God is not condemning the thirst u feel, but how you go about satisfying the thirst. It is trusting what u can control, see feel and touch, and if they are like can u see that they are no in the class of the Spring of living water, they are cracked cisterns from your own digging? That’s the 2 sins God is mad at: forsaking Him and relying own your own ways to get the thirst quenched. Oh how we quench the holy fire of God when we do that!
Today I invite to surrender to God… to give up your feel good strategies, steely determination to make your spiritual life work apart from God’s gift to you? Have you grown deep? Check it out with the fruit of Spirit in Galatians 5: love joy peace patience kindness goodness gentleness, faithfulness, self control against such there is no law? Or are you living the law?
Have you called a spade, a spade, admitted you need grace, His Spirit’s leading, walked with Him, dug your own grave or cracked cisterns? Problem with cracked cisterns, is they work for a while, and it may stink, look muddy, awful to drink, but hey it’s water, it works, but eventually it runs out. Why o why drink from there, when there’s the Spring, tasty awesome, Spring of living water?
I invite you to look in your heart have committed the two sins Jer. Talk about, forsaking God and digging our own cracked cisterns, have we done the same?
Please take a look at back of bulletin. Is this your decision today
_____ I’m committing my life to Christ ________I want to be baptized
_____ I’m renewing my commitment to Christ ________Enroll me in the next membership class
_____I’m willing to help where needed ________ I need prayer from the pastor
I’d like information on
____how to commit my life to Christ ________how to grow as a Christian
____how to connect to a small group ________how to be a member of this church
____how can I be involved with ministry ________counseling
Fill all the important information on it.
Do you sense God speaking to u, to begin a personal relationship with Jesus Christ so that you can have the power of the Holy Spirit in your life? Is there a desire or practice of your sinful nature that you need to stop acting on? What help from God will you ask for so that you can start growing deep?
Perhaps the Lord has laid something else on your heart at this time, admit where u are really at with Him. Come to Him…
Remember that growing deep is not to start digging deeper, it abandoning our own sometimes unconscious and willful strategies to make life work without God. Growing deep requires admitting we have thirst, trusting God who can
