What Your Neighbours Want to Hear
May 16, 2004 Sermon ċ Proverbs 27: 14 NLT
Pastor Dean C. Brown
"If you shout a pleasant greeting to your neighbour too early in the morning, it will be counted as a curse!"
I was walking in my neighbourhood this week, and as is my usual, I was looking for something new and exciting going on. I hadn¡¦t walked very long before I found it. A woman in the neighbourhood had obviously just gotten up and was looking to get her morning newspaper without being seen by anyone. Her attire was such that I knew that she had worn it to bed the night before and her hair style was a unique design, reminiscent of a horses tail that had not been combed out in some time.
I don’t know how long she stood at the door, waiting for a chance to snatch her paper and dash back into the safety of her house, but unfortunately I rounded the corner just as she committed herself to the act. As she bent down to pick up her prize, all that was in me wanted to yell, "Good Morrrrrrning! Beautiful day, eh?"
"If you shout a pleasant greeting to your neighbour too early in the morning, it will be counted as a curse!"
I wonder - is there anything your neighbour might want to hear from you this morning?
1. Your neighbours wants to hear that commitment in marriage still matters.
I know that our culture ridicules what I’m about to say, but I’m gong to say it, anyway. God’s design for marriage is that it last a lifetime. And I believe, with competent research backing me up, that people who marry and stay married are happier, healthier, and wealthier than those who don¡¦t.
Do you know what the Bible says about the permanence of marriage?
Genesis 1: 27; 2: 24 NIV "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh."
Matt. 19: 1-9 NLT "After Jesus had finished saying these things, he left Galilee and went southward to the region of Judea and into the area east of the Jordan River. Vast crowds followed him there, and he healed their sick. Some Pharisees came and tried to trap him with this question: "Should a man be allowed to divorce his wife for any reason?" "Haven’t you read the Scriptures?" Jesus replied. "They record that from the beginning `God made them male and female.¡¦ And he said, `This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.’ Since they are no longer two but one, let no one separate them, for God has joined them together." "Then why did Moses say a man could merely write an official letter of divorce and send her away?" they asked. Jesus replied, "Moses permitted divorce as a concession to your hard-hearted wickedness, but it was not what God had originally intended. And I tell you this, a man who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery--unless his wife has been unfaithful."
Jesus does what we must do. He goes to God’s Word, cites the higher law of creation, and responds to two divergent religious groups of His day who interpreted divorce quite differently.
The Hillel and the Shammai Schools
Hillel taught that a woman could be divorced if she did anything which was displeasing to her husband (not picking up his socks off the floor). The Shammai group held firm that only running around (marital unfaithfulness) was just grounds for divorce. Jesus aligned Himself with Shammai. Our culture aligns itself with Hillel!
Our neighbours have known since childhood that marriage is designed to last a lifetime. Unfortunately, too few people are telling them that commitment matters anymore.
God’s Recipe for Healthy Marriage
-Begin with a bowl full of mutual submission.
-Mix in love and respect in healthy doses.
-Work it all together for a lifetime and when it¡¦s fully matured,
-Bake it in the oven of thanksgiving and season it with forgiving grace.
"Where did I get this, Pastor?" you ask. Not from Dr. Phil!
Ephesians 5: 21; 33 "And further, you will submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. So again I say, each man must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband."
The University of Chicago is doing some fascinating research these days on marriage. And these liberal educators are affirming that couple relationships are best enjoyed in a loving, committed marriage!
Tell your neighbour that commitment in marriage still matters, despite what Trish, on The Bachelor, says!
2. Your neighbours want to hear that children are still valued.
Psalm 127: 3 "Children are a gift from the LORD; they are a reward from him."
For most couples, It’s easy to make love and then make a baby. But it’s another thing to raise that child. The Bible tells me that children are sacred gifts from God, Who is showing His favour upon the union of a man and woman in a loving, committed, marriage relationship. Of course, not everyone agrees with this view.
Traditional values are clashing with the new global standards for tolerance. Traditional values have become tantamount to hate and Christians who cling to biblical boundaries are labelled both intolerant and hateful -- no matter how kind their actions!
Today’s social leaders have redefined hate, identified a new group of haters, and are gathering public support for monitoring and punishing the guilty.
Your culture and mine has lied to women, claiming that the tissue that results from the union of a human female egg and male sperm is nothing more than a blob and can be disposed of at will, without concern or consequence.
I believe that abortion is wrong, not because I don¡¦t like Canada’s Henry Morgentaller or because of research that indicates that abortions are counter-productive to women’s health, but because God, the Creator of us all, states that the fetus is a living human being who is being watched over and lovingly protected by Him from the moment of it¡¦s conception.
Jeremiah 1: 4-5 NLT "The LORD gave me a message. He said, "I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb. Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as my spokesman to the world."
Psalm 139: 13-16 "You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother¡¦s womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvellous¡ and how well I know it. You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb. You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed."
Do people really think that Christians are opposed to abortion because we hate women and want to dominate them by impregnating them? Come on!
Our values are shaped by a clearly-developed biblical picture of God, Who is lovingly involved in the birth process and cares for life in a mother¡¦s womb.
When we tamper with the womb, to harm the life contained in it¡¦s secure environment, we are dictating to Almighty God that we decide life¡¦s term of existence and that we decide who makes and takes it.
Who do we think we are?
Three Ways To Value Our Children
1) By passing on the heritage of parents who have loved and served the Lord and seen Him at work in the world (Dt. 4: 9).
"Be very careful never to forget what you have seen the LORD do for you. Do not let these things escape from your mind as long as you live! And be sure to pass them on to your children and grandchildren.¡¨
God has no grandchildren. Each generation, of necessity, must choose to serve the Lord. As parents of this generation, it¡¦s our responsibility and privilege to show them God’s activity in the world.
Too often our kids fail to follow the Lord because they¡¦ve never seen Him at work in their parents lives, except in church on Sunday morning. Sunday faith is faulty faith!
2) By teaching them to obey their parents (Eph. 6: 1-3).
"Children, obey your parents because you belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing to do. "Honour your father and mother." This is the first of the Ten Commandments that ends with a promise. And this is the promise: If you honour your father and mother, "you will live a long life, full of blessing."
3) By using proper discipline to guide them in how they should live. (Eph. 6: 4; Prov. 22: 6).
"And now a word to you fathers. Don’t make your children angry by the way you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction approved by the Lord."
"Teach your children to choose the right path, and when they are older, they will remain upon it."
3. Your neighbours want to hear that life is still sacred and should be protected.
Do you know that you look like God? (Tell that to the person next to you!). The Bible tells us that we are made in His image and that we look like Him!
Genesis 1: 26 "Then God said, "Let us make people in our image, to be like ourselves. They will be masters over all life--the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the livestock, wild animals, and small animals."
Illus. SPCA Posters are elevating animals to the same level as human beings. Is an animal as important as your mother or brother or best friend? Here¡¦s what God thinks about it:
Psalm 8 "When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and he stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him? You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honour. You made him ruler over the works of your hands; you put everything under his feet: all flocks and herds, and the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas. O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!"
Matthew, a little boy in our church, asked his mother, recently, "Every time that our heart "beeps" (beats), is God trying to tell us something"? She answered "Yes, Matthew, He’s telling us that He loves us". He replied, proudly pounding his chest, "Mom I’m getting another message right now!"
Our neighbours are pounding their chests and getting all kinds of mixed messages about the value and purpose of human life. God¡¦s love message is being drowned out by human cloning advocates and unscrupulous practitioners who are leaving them feeling devalued and worthless. We must tell them that God views life as sacred and it must be valued and protected!
Review:
1. Your neighbours want to hear that commitment in marriage still matters.
2. Your neighbours want to hear that children are still valued.
3. Your neighbours want to hear that life is still sacred and should be protected.
4. Finally, your neighbours want to hear that there is hope for eternity.
Is this All There Is?
I have discovered in my Bible study that Jesus Christ has left me with a certain picture of the end of life and what I can expect when I die.
Death is Not the End of Life
Job 14: 13-17 "If mortals die, can they live again?"
Your neighbours really do want to know if there is life after their loved ones are placed in the cold, dark earth.
Psalm 119: 89 "Forever, O LORD, your word stands firm in heaven."
What the Bible tells us about life after death is reliable and trustworthy. And from its earliest pages, eternal life is promised to the human race.
Jesus was clear on life after death
John 11: 25-26 "I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die like everyone else, will live again. They are given eternal life for believing in me and will never perish. Do you believe this, Martha?"
The Apostle Paul Pulls Back the Curtain of Eternity
Romans 8: 18-27 "Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will give us later. For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are. Against its will, everything on earth was subjected to God’s curse. All creation anticipates the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.
And even we Christians, although we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, also groan to be released from pain and suffering. We, too, wait anxiously for that day when God will give us our full rights as his children, including the new bodies he has promised us. Now that we are saved, we eagerly look forward to this freedom. For if you already have something, you don’t need to hope for it. But if we look forward to something we don’t have yet, we must wait patiently and confidently. And the Holy Spirit helps us in our distress. For we don’t even know what we should pray for, nor how we should pray. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will.¡¨
Once Christians Die, we are with God
2 Cor. 5: 6-10 "So we are always confident, even though we know that as long as we live in these bodies we are not at home with the Lord. That is why we live by believing and not by seeing. Yes, we are fully confident, and we would rather be away from these bodies, for then we will be at home with the Lord. So our aim is to please him always, whether we are here in this body or away from this body. For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in our bodies."
Heaven will be a Wonderful Place
Rev. 22: 1-5 "And the angel showed me a pure river with the water of life, clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb, coursing down the center of the main street. On each side of the river grew a tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, with a fresh crop each month. The leaves were used for medicine to heal the nations. No longer will anything be cursed. For the throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and his servants will worship him. And they will see his face, and his name will be written on their foreheads. And there will be no night there--no need for lamps or sun--for the Lord God will shine on them. And they will reign forever and ever."
Is This News not Good News?
Because our church is a young church, we have very little experience in dealing with death. 99% of you have never heard me preach a funeral service--and I hope you never do!
But I have delivered many funeral messages in my ministry and they have ranged from babies born without life to elderly women who¡¦ve lived full and productive lives.
It’s been my observation that everyone left behind wants to know where their loved one is now that they’ve died.
I always use the funeral service to share the love of God. I do my best to communicate to them that God loves them, that He has proven His love in Christ Jesus, and that He has reserved a place for them, too, when they die IF they intentionally allow Him to be their Saviour and Lord.
Do You Have Hope for the Future?
John 14: 1-6 "Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. And where I go you know, and the way you know." Thomas said to Him, "Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?" Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."
Your neighbours are dying to hear this from you!
Conclusion
I am a son of a small town in upstate New York. The Village of Corinth has a population of 2,474, and the Town, another 4000. We’re known as the "Snowshoe Capital of the World", which is interesting because I¡¦ve never seen one person on snowshoes the entire time I’ve been associated with the place.
We’re located on the Hudson River, which for many, many years supplied power to the IP Co. Paper Mill, which closed down a few years ago due to union problems and the decreasing demand for its paper.
In our town, like other small towns, there’s a united and loyal group of people who have answered the call to be communicators of the news ¡V we call them gossips!
The saying is true, "If you want to keep a secret in Corinth, don’t tell anyone!"¨
In my town, what’s whispered over the clothes line at 7:00 a.m. is being chewed on in the local restaurant at 7:10 a.m.
And you don’t have to live in the town to be in on the gossip. As a son of a town politician, email allows me to stay up on the latest happenings. When you ask, "What’s going on?", be prepared to hear about it!
Any new news is good new for the gossip set!
I’ve been thinking a lot about how we can impact our neighbours for Jesus Christ right here in our community. Everyone likes a good story and everyone likes to know what’s going on.
So:
Why don’t we become the community "Good News" Group? Why don’t we whisper over the clotheslines or in the coffee shop down the street that:
1. Commitment in marriage still matters.
2. That children are still valued.
3. That life is still sacred and should be protected.
4. And, finally, that there is hope for eternity.
As long as we don¡¦t do it to early in the morning, our words will be considered a blessing not a curse and thousands of our friends and neighbours just might pay a little more attention to the church we attend and the God we love!
Prayer
Application
-When is the last time you did any research on the issues we’ve talked about today? Do some this week!
-Are you afraid your neighbour might be unkind to you if you share this message with them over coffee? You won’t know until you try!
-How’s your own marriage? Could it use a little sprucing up? There are people here who can help you. Call us and let us show you how!
-Are you valuing life as you should?
-Do you have hope that there is more to life than just what we live on this side of the grave? Have you ever really asked God to become a part of your life. Jesus Christ is waiting for you today to make Him your choice!
Acts 4: 12 "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved."
Note: This outline was developed from an article I read online. While I could not locate the source, Barna may be the source.
