INTRO.- Quips, quotes and notes.
- If some TV shows are not taken off the air, the public will demand longer commercials.
ILL.- You perhaps recall that very old (70’s) Virginia Slims cigarette commercial saying, “You’ve come a long way, baby”? Well, we have come a long way in our TV programs! It’s gone from Howdy Doody in the 1950’s to television today, which includes nudity, porn, violence, brutality, horrible language, hatred, murder, and you name it!
What can we do about it? Fight back. Write letters. Turn off the TV. Speak out.
The world is quick to speak out for what it believes in. What about Christian people? Don’t we have the same right?
I Pet. 3:15 “But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.”
ILL.- Recently a man by the name of Michael Moore made a supposed documentary movie (Fahrenheit 9/11) in regard to our President. Moore is speaking out and many people are buying what he has to say. I think he is nothing but a foul-mouthed liberal who is out to make money anyway he can.
One writer said, “Michael Moore should be charged with and tried for treason. His latest film, ’’Fahrenheit 9/11,’’ is pure anti-American propaganda and is nothing more than a fictionally based political assassination piece.”
Still another writer said, “Fahrenheit 911 is designed to first make Moore money so he can enjoy the riches offered in this country that he so despises along with his buddies in the Hollywood left. Second, it is designed to destroy the morale of the American people and our troops, and paint a picture of President Bush as the real threat to the world.”
I John 2:15-17 “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world--the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does--comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.”
We are in a constant battle with the world and the ideologies of the world. WE MUST TAKE A STAND. WE MUST SPEAK OUT, BUT DO IT WITH GENTLENESS AND RESPECT.
- No fault insurance is nothing new. It’s never been anybody’s fault.
Have you noticed how most people never want to admit fault for anything? Why is this? It’s called human nature. It’s called our sinful human nature. And it started with Adam and Eve a long time ago. And we have adopted their mentality very well. We’re related to them.
ILL.- NEW YORK (AP) - Glen Campbell defends himself against his drunken driving charge, claiming he "wasn’t really that drunk," but was "just over-served." Campbell was arrested in November near his Phoenix home after causing a minor traffic accident. He pleaded guilty to extreme drunken driving and leaving the scene of an accident and was sentenced to 10 nights in jail. "I wasn’t really that drunk," he told syndicated entertainment TV show "Access Hollywood" in an interview. "I was just over-served." Campbell also said he didn’t remember anything because he was "in a blackout mode." A mug shot showed a scowling Campbell. "When I saw the mug shot, I said, `Who is that guy?’" the 68-year-old singer said. "Everybody says it’s the devil, but it isn’t, it’s God’s way of telling you to slow down." He is barred from drinking alcohol during his two years’ probation.
I WAS JUST OVERSERVED. Glen Campbell was essentially saying, “It wasn’t my fault.” And we all do this at times.
There is only one cure for this “no fault” business. And that’s to seek the Lord and His will for our lives. It’s a matter of humbling ourselves before the Lord. James 4:8-10 and I Peter 5:5-6.
- An optimist sees the doughnut. A pessimist sees the hole. The realist eats it.
Which are you? I think all Christians should be both optimists and realists. We must learn to combine the two. However, I think we are weakest in the optimistic department or the faith department. Our realism often supersedes our faith or trust in the Lord.
ILL.- Someone said that faith in God makes great optimists. I believe it. Over in Burma, India, Adoniram Judson (1788-1850) was lying in a foul jail with 32 lbs. of chains on his ankles, his feet bound to a bamboo pole. A fellow prisoner said, "Dr. Judson, what about the prospect of the conversion of the heathen?" with a sneer on his face. His instant reply was, "The prospects are just as bright as the promises of God."
That’s both faith and optimism and we need both! We modern Christians need to learn trust God and trust in what He can do and what He says HE WILL DO! We all need to learn to trust God more.
ILL.- A radio announcer once asked Leo Durocher, manager of the New York Giants, “Barring the unforeseen, Leo, will your club get the pennant?” Back came Durocher’s reply, “There ain’t gonna be no unforeseen.”
That’s the kind of faith we all need in the Lord and His Word. If God said it we need to believe it, trust it and live by it.
Now to the book of Proverbs.
LOVE AND FAITHFULNESS
Proverbs 16:6 “Through love and faithfulness sin is atoned for; through the fear of the Lord a man avoids evil.”
ILL.- John Stott wrote IN THE CONTEMPORARY CHRISTIAN: Not long before she died in 1988, in a moment of surprising candor in television, Marghanita Laski, one of our best-known secular humanists and novelists, said, "What I envy most about you Christians is your forgiveness; I have nobody to forgive me."
Fortunately, for us, we do have someone to forgive us. And He is the one person who counts most of all! Some people may not forgive us when we sin against them, but the Lord holds no grudges and it’s all because of His Son Jesus.
Through love and faithfulness our sins are atoned for. Through God’s love and His faithfulness to us, our sins are forgiven.
John 3:16-17 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
Rom. 5:8 “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
Eph. 2:4-5 “But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions--it is by grace you have been saved.”
It is because God our creator is so loving and gracious that He was willing to make atonement for our sins with His own son! It’s almost unbelievable, because none of us would be willing to give up our beloved child for sinful mankind.
We’re not in that kind of swapping business, but God is! Was and still is! The sacrifice of Christ is still powerful and effective today. His death on the cross still atones for the sins of people. THE BLOOD OF THE CROSS HAS NEVER LOST ITS POWER TO SAVE!
ILL.- A traveler fell into a deep pit and couldn’t get out. Several persons came along and saw him struggling in the pit.
- The sensitive person said, "I feel for you down there."
- The reflective person said, "It’s logical that someone would fall into the pit."
- The artistic person said, "I can give you ideas on how to decorate your pit."
- The judgmental person said, "Only bad people fall into the pit."
- The analytical person said, "Help me measure the depth of your pit."
- The curious person said, "Tell me how you fell into the pit."
- The perfectionist said, "I believe you deserve your pit."
- The evaluator said, "Tell me, are you paying taxes on this pit."
- The self-pitying person said, "You should have seen my pit."
- The specialist in meditation said, "Just relax and don’t think about the pit."
- The optimist said, "Cheer up! Things could be worse."
- The pessimist said, "Be prepared! Things will get worse."
- Jesus, seeing the man, took him by the hand and lifted him out of the miserable pit.
God, through His Son Jesus, did lift us out of our pit of sin and it’s because HE IS LOVE! It’s certainly not because He has a heart like man, but we most certainly need a heart like His!
I John 4:16 “And so we know and rely on the love God has for us…” BOY, DO WE EVER? We rely heavily on the love that God has for us! Otherwise, none of us will make it to heaven!
I believe in you and I hope you believe in me. I rely on you being here in church every Sunday, but your attendance is not going to make me or break me. BUT MY RELIANCE OR LACK OF RELIANCE ON GOD WILL! We must trust in Him, in who He is, and how He is! The God whose love reaches the deepest ocean and the highest heaven!
God is not only loving, He is also faithful.
I Cor. 10:13 “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.”
I Cor. 1:9 “God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful.”
Rom. 3:3 “What if some did not have faith? Will their lack of faith nullify God’s faithfulness?”
II Cor. 1:8 “But as surely as God is faithful, our message to you is not ‘Yes’ and ‘No.’”
I Thess. 5:24 “The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it.”
II Thess. 3:3 “But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.”
II Tim. 2:13 “If we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself.”
Heb. 10:23 “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.”
I Pet. 4:19 “So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.”
I John 1:9 “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”
I bet you didn’t realize there were so many Scriptures about the faithfulness of God. And there are more.
ILL.- A lady once asked John Wesley that suppose he were to know that he would die at 12:00 midnight tomorrow, how would he spend the intervening time. His reply: “Why madam, just as I intend to spend it now. I would preach this evening at Gloucester, and again at five tomorrow morning; after that I would ride to Tewkesbury, preach in the afternoon, and meet the societies in the evening.
“I would then go to Rev. Martin’s house, who expects to entertain me, talk and pray with the family as usual, retire to my room at 10 o’clock, commend myself to my heavenly Father, lie down to rest, and wake up in Glory.”
That’s faithfulness. But as great as man’s faithfulness is or could be, God’s faithfulness is greater still! God’s faithfulness never fails!
Gal. 4:4-5 “But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law…” God showed up at just the right time to send Jesus to save us from our sins. God’s timing is perfect and so is His faithfulness.
God is also faithful when we fall into temptation. He is there with an open door for us to escape. He is always there even if we don’t see Him.
ILL.- One guy said, “My girlfriend called me as she was driving to an appointment. She arrived, and I could tell from her voice that she was getting frustrated. Finally she said, "I know I had my cell phone with me. And now I can’t find it!"
I replied, "Aren’t you talking on it!?" There was a period of stunned silence as the reality of the situation sank in - followed by, "You are NOT going to tell anybody about this!"
We’re that way at times. Sometimes our escape from the temptation to sin is so very close and yet we are totally blind to it.
God is faithful. He has provided various ways to escape temptation: the Bible, Christian literature, prayer, Christian friends, the church, keeping busy, etc.
ILL.- In Matthew chapter 4 we have the account of Jesus’ temptation. Satan said to Jesus, “Command these stones to become loaves of bread.” And Jesus answered, “IT IS WRITTEN…” Probably our best defense against temptation is knowing God’s Word. But God provides many ways to escape.
ILL.- When Thomas Edison was asked how he resisted temptations, he replied, “NEVER HAVE ANY. I DON’T HAVE TIME.” Busyness can be a great asset. God is faithful. He ALWAYS provides a way of escape.
Prov. 16:6 “Through love and faithfulness sin is atoned for; through the fear of the Lord a man avoids evil.”
Through God’s love and faithfulness our sins are atoned or perhaps taken care of, done away with, forgiven, etc.
THROUGH THE FEAR OF THE LORD A MAN AVOIDS EVIL. Good statement. Solid truth.
Prov. 14:16 “A wise man fears the Lord and shuns evil…”
What kind of fear of the Lord? There is the “turn of burn” type of fear, which some people should have. All of us have at some time or other in our lives feared God in this way, and perhaps we still do to some extent.
Heb. 12:28-29 “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our ‘God is a consuming fire.’”
Great reverence and awe sounds more like the type of fear that we should have for our God. Our reverence, awe and respect should be so great that we try to avoid all evil.
I John 4:17-18 “In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.”
I believe that as we grow in our love for God, the less literal fear we will have for Him. But we will grow in our respect, reverence and awe. THE MORE WE COME TO KNOW HIM, THE MORE WE WILL LOVE HIM and this love will cause us to avoid evil.
ILL.- Hudson Taylor was interviewing some young people who had volunteered for the Lord’s service. He asked several practical questions to find out how well qualified they were for the life they were anticipating. “And why do you wish to go as a foreign missionary?”
“I want to reach others across the sea because Christ has commanded us to go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature,” one replied. Another said, “I want to go because millions are dying without ever having heard of Jesus, the only One who can save them.” Others have similar answers.
Hudson Taylor looked at them thoughtfully for a moment and then said. “All of your motives are good, but I fear they will fail you in times of severe testing and tribulation—especially if you are confronted with the possibility of having to face death for your testimony. The only motive that will enable you to remain true is stated in 2 Cor. 5:14. Christ’s love constraining you will keep you faithful in every situation.”
And this is the same kind of motivation that we need to win people to Christ, keep living the Christian life, and avoid evil in life. Christ’s love compels us. If His love doesn’t compel us, nothing else will.
“Through love and faithfulness sin is atoned for; through the fear of the Lord a man avoids evil.”
