INTRO.- ILL.- One of golf’s interesting moments came when a Scotchman demonstrated the new game to President Ulysses S. Grant. Carefully placing the ball on the tee, he took a mighty swing. The club hit the turf and scattered dirt all over the President’s beard and surrounding vicinity, while the ball set on the tee. Again the Scotchman swung, and again he missed. The President waited patiently through six tries and then quietly stated, "There seems to be a fair amount of exercise in the game, but I fail to see the purpose of the ball.”
What’s your purpose in life? Hitting a ball around the golf course? We all have a purpose in life and it seems to vary with age and ability. Hitting a ball around a golf course is not necessarily bad or evil in itself, but if the Lord is not included, then something is wrong.
Obviously, our interests, pursuits, and goals in life change with age. When we are young it can be any number of things: sports, the opposite sex, partying, cars, etc., etc.
ILL.- One time in a high school Sunday School class I asked my students this question: What do you have that you just can’t live without? One girl said her nice clothes. One boy said his music, his boom box. Another young man said his pickup truck.
I didn’t think there was anything wrong with nice clothes, music or a pickup truck, but I encouraged them to think about how the Lord should be involved in all things.
Our pursuits in life change, however, with age. For example, when most people get married and start having children, lots of things change, don’t they?
ILL.- Like 56 year-old, new daddy, David Letterman. Letterman’s girlfriend, Regina Lasko, delivered a baby boy late Monday night, Nov. 3rd. He weighed in at 9 pounds, 11 ounces. Letterman said, "I could never imagine ever being a part of something that turned out this beautiful.”
I wonder if Letterman’s purpose in life will change now that he’s a father? Could be. Should be. Parenting changes your purpose or direction in life. Or it should.
Regardless of our momentary purpose in life, our ultimate purpose in life should be to glorify God any way we can and at any age in life or state of life: young or old, single or married, playful or serious, etc.
I Cor. 10:31 “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”
Can we honestly say that we do everything to the glory of God? Probably not, but we should try. This means that we should seek to please the Lord in everything we do in life.
ILL.- Without a relationship to God through Christ, there is a void, a vacuum in life. Many people, even those who are well-known, can attest to that void. For example, Ralph Barton, one of the top cartoonists of the nation, left this note pinned to his pillow before taking his own life: "I have had few difficulties, many friends, great successes; I have gone from wife to wife, from house to house, visited great countries of the world, but I am fed up with inventing devices to fill up twenty-four hours of the day."
Sounds like he was a very unhappy, depressed man. Life without God is not good! But life with God can be full, rich, and abundant!
PROP.- In this text, Paul speaks our purpose in life, the power available and the promise that is ours.
1- Purpose to achieve
2- Power to receive
3- Promise to believe
I. THERE IS A PURPOSE TO ACHIEVE
V. 12, 14-16
ILL.- Sign on door: "Gone out of business. Didn’t know what our business was." 1963 -- University Christian Church. in NY.
It’s hard to believe that a church, especially a Christian Church didn’t know what their business or purpose was.
V. 12 “Continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.” One purpose we have to work out our salvation.
ILL.- One time the philosopher John Dewey found his son in the bathroom. The floor was flooded with water. The professor began think, trying to understand what had happened. After working a few minutes, his son said, “DAD, THIS IS NOT THE TIME TO THINK. IT’S THE TIME TO MOP.”
There is a time to think and a time to work. It takes work to accomplish any worthwhile in life. WORK OUT OUR SALVATION. This is one purpose we have.
The thought is that we are to work out our salvation to completion…finish the project. There are some things that we must do for ourselves. God won’t do everything for us, but He does most things for us. He did the big thing by providing Christ as our savior, our substitute.
We don’t work at our Christianity in order to be saved. We work at it because we are saved!
Eph. 2:10 “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”
The natural result of our salvation is that we go to work. If we don’t work at our Christianity in various ways then something is wrong. What are we talking about? Christian service. Giving. Compassion. Love. Witnessing.
ILL.- Recently my son Shane who is 23 years old and really getting involved with his church, Mt. Auburn Christian Church, Cape Girardeau, MO, said that he had been going with a group from his Sunday School class to a nursing home once a month. They are playing bingo with the residents there and he’s finding joy in service!
This is the way it’s supposed to be! God wants us to “work out” our salvation or work because we are saved. Christian work is the result of salvation. And we find joy in serving.
We are to work out your salvation with fear and trembling. The idea is not that we are afraid of God, because He is our loving, compassionate, gracious Heavenly Father. It’s just that we are afraid of our own weaknesses. We are weak and should fear that we might fail our Heavenly Father.
V. 14 “Do everything without complaining or arguing.”
This is another purpose we must have in living the Christian life. Do EVERYTHING without complaining. Tall order.
ILL.- “Waiter!” shouted an angry customer. “I can’t tell if this is coffee or tea. It tastes like motor oil.” The waiter replied, “Well, if it tastes like motor oil then it’s coffee because our tea tastes like turpentine.”
The application is this: Have you ever been served bad food in a restaurant or had bad service? IF SO, HOW DID YOU REACT?
We all like to receive good service and get what we pay for, but that doesn’t always happen. How do we respond? Do we respond with great anger or with graciousness?
Someone is watching you! It is called the world. We are the world’s Bible. Even more so, we are the world’s Christ! We are representatives of the Lord Jesus Christ. And we can’t imagine Christ going around complaining about everything.
I Pet. 2:12 “Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day He visits us.”
ILL.- A Christian lady worked on the 24th floor of a downtown office building. One day, the elevator operator commented, "You must be a Christian. You have such a warm smile." From that point on, that lady smiled whether she was happy or angry on the inside, because she didn’t want to destroy her testimony for Christ.
We should be somewhat different than the people of the world: sweeter, kinder, gracious, courteous, loving, etc. This is should be evident in our lives, not grouchiness.
V. 16 “As you hold out the word of life…”
This is another purpose that we have in life: holding out the Word of life or the Word of God to people.
ILL.- There is a story involving Yogi Berra, the well-known catcher for the New York Yankees, and Hank Aaron, who at that time was the chief power hitter for the Milwaukee Braves.
The teams were playing in the World Series, and as usual Yogi was keeping up his ceaseless chatter, intended to pep up his teammates on the one hand, and distract the Milwaukee batters on the other.
As Aaron came to the plate, Yogi tried to distract him by saying, "Henry, you’re holding the bat wrong. You’re supposed to hold it so you can read the trademark." Aaron didn’t say anything, but when the next pitch came he hit it into the left-field bleachers. After rounding the bases and tagging up at home plate, Aaron looked at Yogi Berra and said, "I didn’t come up here to read."
Hank Aaron was there to “hit the ball.” Why are we here? We are here to play the game, to play ball, so to speak. To get involved in the game of witnessing, carrying out the will of God, carrying the gospel to people! We’re not here to sit and read and twiddle our thumbs.
ILL.- Robert Speer said, “Any man who has a religion is bound to do one of two things with it: change it or spread it. If it isn’t true, he must give it up. IF IT IS TRUE, HE MUST GIVE IT AWAY.”
God put us here to give away the gospel of Christ. He is the bread of life, the best bread available. We’re just one beggar telling another beggar where to find some good bread! This is our purpose in life.
II. THERE IS A POWER TO RECEIVE
V. 13 “For it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.” There is a power to receive and it’s God’s power!
ILL.- In a seminary missions class, Herbert Jackson told how, as a new missionary, he was assigned a car that would not start without a push. After pondering his problem, he devised a plan. He went to the school near his home, got permission to take some children out of class, and had them push his car. As he made his rounds, he would either park on a hill or leave the engine running. He used this ingenious procedure for two years.
Ill health forced the Jackson family to leave, and a new missionary came to that station. When Jackson proudly began to explain his arrangement for getting the car started, the new man began looking under the hood. Before the explanation was complete, the new missionary interrupted, "Why, Dr. Jackson, I believe the only trouble is this loose cable."
He gave the cable a twist, stepped into the car, hit the switch, and to Jackson’s astonishment, the engine roared to life.
For two years needless trouble had become routine. The power was there all the time. Only a loose connection kept Jackson from putting that power to work.
Do you feel as though you lack power in living the Christian life? Are you fearful to witness to others? Do you trust God to provide for you and your family in all situations?
These situations and more may indicate a lack of faith in the power of God to work in our lives. And it may be that you only have a loose connection.
ILL.- When my uncle John Shepherd passed away in Feb., 1975, my dad and I were walking outside Uncle John’s house and dad said, “Well, it was just John’s time to go.” Get the picture. Dad was not a Christian and I was. I had been preaching about 10 or 11 years. I had the perfect opportunity to say something to my dad, like, “Well, dad, the Lord certainly knows when everyone will die and He wants us all to be prepared. Uncle John was a Christian, etc.”
Instead of saying something, I froze. I said nothing. I lacked power. I had the power available. I must have had a loose connection!
J.B. Phillips paraphrases Ephesians 1:19 "How tremendous is the power available to us who believe in God.”
God can work in us and through us if we will let Him. We must realize that He is all-powerful and that His power is available to us who believe. His power can enable us and empower us to live for Christ.
ILL.- Don DeWelt was one of my favorite professors at Ozark Christian College. His oldest Dan baptized me into Christ in 1964.
Don passed away some years ago, but listen to this: HE SANG FOR HIS OWN FUNERAL SERVICE! Yes, that’s right. About a week or so before Don passed away, Don sang his own funeral song at the College Heights Christian Church in Joplin, MO. He announced that it was funeral song, “since he wasn’t going to be there for the service.”
How’s that for optimism? How’s that for power?! There is a power available to us and we must not be in darkness about His power. We must seek the Lord’s strength and power for the Christian life. How? Ask. Seek. Pray. Read. Serve. Don’t lose your connection! It could cost you great power in life.
III. THERE IS A PROMISE TO BELIEVE
V. 17 “Even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you.”
It sounds like to me that Paul was a happy man, a joyous man in spite of his sacrifice and service. That’s the promise that we have and must believe!
ILL. – Years ago, George Jelinek, newly-elected member of the Kansas House of Representatives, distributed handbills during the campaign which promised: “I will work for you.”
“One farmer,” said the new representative, “told me he voted for me and now he needed some help putting up alfalfa. By jiminy, I did it. But I’m going to have to watch what I say.”
A promise is a promise. When God promises something He keeps His promise. God has promised joy to us in the midst of sacrifice and service.
I Cor. 1:9 “God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful.” When God makes a promise, He keeps it.
ILL.- Having lost in a fire virtually everything they owned, the Spafford family made new plans, including a move from Chicago to France. Horatio Spafford planned the trip for his wife and four daughters to be as trouble-free as possible.
To transport them from America to France, he booked passage on a huge ship, and made sure they had Christians with whom to fellowship in route. He planned to join them a few weeks later. In spite of much careful preparation, Mr. Spafford’s plans suddenly dissolved when the ship carrying his loved ones was rammed by another vessel and sank, carrying his four beloved daughters to the bottom of the ocean.
It’s hard to imagine the pain that Horatio Spafford must have experienced at the loss of his daughters.
ILL.- “When peace like a river attendeth my way, When sorrows like sea billows roll – Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say, It is well, it is well with my soul.” Spafford penned these very words as his ship passed over the watery grave of his daughters! Amazing grace! Amazing trust!
God has not promised skies always blue,
Flower-strewn pathways all our life through;
God has not promised sun without rain,
Joy without sorrow, peace without pain.
But God has promised strength for the day,
Rest for the labor, light for the way;
Grace for the trials, help from above,
Unfailing sympathy, undying love.
“The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want…Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies. Thou anointest my head with oil, my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” Ps. 23:1, 5-6
It appears that God has promised joy in the midst of our trials and heartache in life. But this can only happen as we continue to look to Him and learn on Him.
CONCLUSION----------------------------------------
God has promised power in life if we will pursue His purpose.
ILL.- John Wesley once said, “I want the whole Christ for my Savior, the whole Bible for my book, the whole Church for my fellowship, and the whole world for my mission field.”
How’s that for purpose in life? And God empowered Wesley for life. God can do the same for us if we seek His purpose in life.
I Cor. 10:31 “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”
