Many of us view the New Year as a time of beginning afresh, of setting new goals for ourselves, and making changes in our pattern of living. Some of us begin the New Year by saying to ourselves, as well as others, “I’m going to do things differently this year. I’m going to make some needed changes that I’ve been neglecting for far too long. I’m going to be a different person than I was in 2004.” Others of us don’t see ourselves making too many changes in our lives, no drastic alterations from the previous year. Though everything in our lives is not perfect, we are basically satisfied and reasonably content. Last year wasn’t that bad for us so we just hope that things will go on as before, that we will continue in the way that we’ve been heading.
Whether we see ourselves making many or a few changes, all should have at least one goal in common. Every one of us, from the youngest to the oldest, from richest to the poorest, from the least to the most educated, from the most pious to the most worldly, should have this as our goal…Each of us needs to strive for more depth in the Lord and more growth in God’s grace. Our prayers and goal should be that at the end of the year we find ourselves stronger in the Lord, with more depth in the Spirit, more understanding of God’s word, more commitment to doing God’s will. As we are all aware, there are still unplumbed depths in the Lord that have not yet been reached and there are heights of joy that we haven’t yet attained. The Spirit of God ought not be finished with any of us yet. No matter how much we have experienced or think we know there is still much that God’s Spirit can teach and reveal to us.
The Christian journey is something that we must grow into. One does not reach the highest heights or deepest depths by wishing it or wanting it or claiming it. I try not to judge anyone’s religion, but I become suspect of people who become holy, sanctified, and filled with the Holy Ghost overnight. Such people often come in to the Christian life a bang and go out with a whimper. Rather than waning and weakening with time, true religion, true faith proceeds from strength to strength. Time takes its toll on all we know and everything we use except our FAITH!
In time, the clothes we wear, no matter how fine or how expensive they are (Tommy, FUBU, Nike), they wear out. In time, the cars we drive (Benz, Lexus, Beamer) wear out; their bodies rust and engines stop running. In time, the house we live in begin to weaken and crumble. In time, the techno-gadgets we rushed out to get become outdated and obsolete. In time, the greatest of athletes lose their coordination and must retire. In time, the vitality of our youth wanes as our steps slow and our energy fades. In time, stars noted for their beauty and whose names were once household words, fade from public memory. In time, even the caskets in which we are buried, no matter how much we’ve paid for them, rot away to dust. The Christian, however, gets stronger IN TIME. Only a Christian, like Job, can say, “Though worms destroy this body, yet, in my flesh shall I see God.” OUR LIFE SHOULD GO FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH AND GLORY TO GLORY. EVERY ROUND SHOULD GO HIGHER AND HIGHER. EACH VICTORY OUGHT TO HELP US “SOME OTHER TO WIN.”
THERE SHOULD BE A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MY FAITH NOW AND THE FAITH I HAD WHEN I FIRST STARTED PREACHING. MY FAITH OUGHT TO BE STRONGER; I OUGHT TO HAVE MORE DEPTH AND KNOWLEDGE. I SHOULDN’T BE DISCOURAGED AS EASILY OR WILLING TO QUIT SO READILY; MY FEELINGS SHOULD NOT BE HURT AS QUICKLY. I SHOULD BE MORE CONVINCED AND CONVICTED ABOUT THE REALITY AND TRUTH OF SOME THINGS NOW. I SHOULD BE MORE FIRM AND RESOLUTE ABOUT SOME THINGS AND MORE FLEXIBLE ABOUT OTHER THINGS NOW. LIFE, THE CHURCH, PEOPLE, GOD, THE SCRIPTURES, THE WORLD SHOULD NOT LOOK THE SAME NOW AS IT DID TEN YEARS AGO WHEN I FIRST STARTED PREACHING. If everything and everybody looks the same now as they did then, I haven’t grown very much. Growth makes one see things differently.
I’m not simply talking about the passage of time, because the years can go by without much growth taking place. Some people think the same things, and try to do the same things they did years ago. Therefore, each of us needs to look at ourselves and see how much or how little we have grown in grace, in the Spirit, in the knowledge of God since last year. Each of us needs to look NOT at our neighbor but at ourselves to see how much depth we have in God so that we can grow in the fullness and knowledge of the Lord as the Holy Spirit directs. Well, lets take a look at our text.
In Ezekiel’s vision recounted in our text, the land was nourished by a stream of water that flowed from the temple. As Ezekiel walked along the banks of the stream he was directed at certain intervals to step into the water to ascertain its depth. At one point the water was ankle deep, and at another point he was knee deep in the stream. He followed the stream a little further, and the next time he stepped into the stream he was waist deep. When he stepped into the water a little further downstream, he discovered that the stream had become a river so deep that he could not stand up and cross it on foot; he had to swim across. Testing the waters.
Where is your faith this morning? How deep is your faith? Some of us have ankle deep faith. Walking through water that is ankle deep is generally no problem and requires a minimum of adjustment on our part. All we have to do is take off our shoes, roll up our pants a bit, and we can easily move through ankle-deep water. It is so shallow we can easily run through it. After we come out of it and roll down our pants and put on our shoes, people can’t even tell we’ve been in the water. Some of us have ankle-deep faith. It doesn’t inconvenience us much; we only have to make a minimum adjustment. We occasionally go to church or we may attend regularly provided we are not inconvenienced too much. As long as there is not a 1:00 play-off game; as long as there’s not a 50% off sale at Wards; as long as its not first Sunday and we’re out by a descent hour. We don’t want church services to last too long or become too spiritual; we don’t want to be challenged about our stewardship and discipleship…I can’t go to that church because they’re in there allllll day! I can’t go there because folks get too happy, running around shoutin’ hallelujah, praise God, and thank you Jesus! I can’t go there because that they always trying to get me to do something or come back for something?
We want 7 – eleven religion and faith; that we can run into and out of quickly. We are in and out of it so quickly that most people don’t see a difference in us at all. We are still “hell” to live with at home (Amen, walls!) We are just as cantankerous on the job. That’s the trouble with ankle-deep faith; it may be convenient, but it doesn’t last. It dries up quickly as the water we wipe off our feet. WHEN WE NEED IT, WE DON’T HAVE IT, BECAUSE IT HAS DRIED OUT. WE DIDN’T STAY IN THE STREAM LONG ENOUGH AND GO DOWN DEEP ENOUGH TO BECOME SATURATED BY THE WATERS OF THE SPIRIT.
Then there are others who have knee-deep faith. Knee-deep faith is not quite as convenient as ankle-deep faith. It slows us down a little more than ankle-deep faith does. We can run through ankle-deep water but knee-deep water you have to walk through. Knee-deep faith inconveniences us some but not much. We can still keep on the same clothes; we just have to roll our pants up and step a little higher. Knee-deep faith is just a minor inconvenience. Knee-deep faith says, we want some of the Holy Spirit but not much – not so much that we can’t control it; not so much that we might have to change. We don’t mind giving up some of our substance but not much; we’ll “break the Lord off a little somethin-somethin” but we won’t give God the tithe, the minimum 10% that the Scriptures call for. We’ll give some service, but not much. We’ll serve on some committees and work on some projects provided they don’t take up too much of our time.
Folks with knee deep faith are like the members of the church at Laodicea (lay-o-di-c-a) in the book of Revelation whom the risen Lord said were neither hot nor cold but lukewarm. Our Lord condemned lukewarm faith. While knee-deep faith calls for some commitment, renders some service, possesses some love of God and zeal of the Spirit, it WILL NOT SAVE YOU! When trouble comes. (PAUSE) and problems arise; it isn’t deep enough to hold you. When we become discouraged and feel like giving up, it will not keep us. When the adversary attacks, knee-deep faith is not deep enough to shield you. Knee-deep faith cannot unlock the deep mysteries and sweetest joys of Hope…It’s…just…not…deep… enough. Ah, you can walk out of knee-deep water wearing the same ol’ clothes, looking and acting the same ol’ way. (Amen, lights)
But the text says that Ezekiel walked a little farther along the banks of the stream until he was directed to test the waters again. This time when he stepped into the stream, the water came to his waist. Waist-high faith requires greater commitment than the others do. We have to go a little farther to get it and we can’t get out of as easily. We can run through ankle-deep water and we walk through knee-deep, but when it comes to waist-deep all we can do is wade through it. Waist-high faith has some depth to it. When water comes to our waists, we cannot hide the fact that we have been in the water because the lower half of our bodies has been totally immersed. The tops of our bodies may be dry but we still have to change our clothes because we are soaked. When we have waist-high faith, we have had sufficient experience with Christ and the Spirit to have some changes take place in our lives. Even though there are areas that have remained dry, places where the work of the Gospel and the Spirit have not taken hold, much of our living has been submitted to Christ. And although people will notice the dry areas, they also see how wet we are and admit that at some point we must have had some experience with Jesus. We are so thoroughly wet that we must put on different garments, the robes of righteousness, and acquire a different look.
Most of us are waist high in our religious quest. That’s where most of our members, officers, and preachers are found. For most of us our commitments to our God, our faith, and our church are strong enough that we can’t simply run away or walk away from them. So we spend our lives slowly wading in through this tedious journey – waist deep in the Spirit, waist deep in grace, waist deep in the love of God, waist deep in the Word of God, waist deep in Christ. It’s not as easy to pull somebody out of the waters when their waist deep as it is if they are ankle-deep or knee-deep in it. Most of us are firm and secure in our faith commitment, and it serves most of our purposes. No matter who comes or who goes we’re going to stay with the church; we’re going to continue praising and serving the Lord. However, the mistake that most of us make is in not striving for something deeper than waist-high faith.
I don’t know about you but I’m not satisfied with my place in the Lord. I want to go deeper in the Spirit, deeper in the Word, deeper in faith and grace, deeper in love and in the will of God. I am so glad that there is something deeper than waist-high Faith. As rewarding and fulfilling as waist-high depth in the Lord is, we can go deeper. Thanks be unto God that Ezekiel came out of the waist high water and walked a little farther and when the Spirit directed him to step into the water again…Oh Lord, have mercy the stream became a river! A river so deep that he could no longer walk through it. He had to give himself completely to it. Nah, he could just roll up his pants…he had to immerse himself and swim across. See as I was doing my exegetical analysis of this passage of Scripture I realized something. This river symbolizes life from God and blessings from His throne. It’s a gentle, safe, deep river that ebbs and flows with the glory of God…. Oh you’re not feelin me this morning…Come on, test the waters with me…Nah, you too cute. Nah, you might mess up your hair. Nah, you might mess up your suit…Come on, test the waters.
See, when you experience faith deep enough to swim in, we don’t hold any dry areas back. We give ourselves completely to God. We know that we are not partially cleansed or halfway forgiven, or “sometimey” loved, but that the blood of Jesus has sanctified…it has cleansed…and it has washed us through and through, and made us new from head to foot. Our sins are completely forgiven and our salvation completely restored. We don’t become perfect, we don’t stop making mistakes, but we are able to give ourselves to God as never before in spite of ourselves. Our prayers truly become “Thy will be done.” We recognize that, “Lord I’m not important, but your will and your works are. I just want to be an instrument in your hands.”
When faith becomes deep enough to swim in, we no longer stand on our own feet, or try to walk or wade through on our own power. Now I know some of you may be afraid of the water but when you test these waters, you don’t have to worry. You don’t need a life jacket. You don’t need someone standing on the banks ready to jump in after you. How are you so sure brother-preacher? When you test these waters and you realize that you have faith deep enough to swim in, several things happen.
1. The first thing is that you don’t have to worry because a faith this deep SUSTAINS you. We can rely on God’s Word and put our trust in God as never before. Live or die, sink or swim, we forge through life’s turbulent seas believing that underneath us are everlasting arms…upholding us against tempestuous waves and raging billows. With all we have—our lives, our families, our careers—we dare to swim on the care and under the protection and the grace of God. So, “if the storms don’t cease, and if the winds keep on blowing…my soul has been anchored in the Lord.” Yeah, Yeah…God will sustain you. The song goes on to say, “that the hope that lies within is reassured as I keep my eyes upon the distance shore…I KNOW He’ll lead me safely to that blessed place He has prepared…” A faith deep enough to sustain you.
2. But not only will it sustain you, it will keep you STEDFAST. When our faith gets deep enough to swim in, there’s no turning back; no walking away or quitting when our feelings get hurt; no being chased away when we are talked about; no being driven away by confusion or misunderstanding; no running away when we get a preacher we don’t like… When Cortez’s 500 conquistadors disembarked on the eastern coasts of Mexico, Cortez set fire to his ships. His warriors, who were watching their means of retreat and passage back home burning in the harbor, knew that they were committing their lives to the conquest of the new world for Spain. Where are you in the water? Are you jumping around and splashing in the puddles? Are you just rolling up your pants like your running on the beach trying not to get too wet? Are you waist high, playing around like you’re in the pool? Or are you in so deep that nothing or no one is gonna keep to from fully experiencing God. Steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the Word of the Lord!
3. Not only will a deep faith Sustain you; not only will it keep you Steadfast. But a deep faith will SHELTER you. I know that faith that’s deep enough to swim in can be frightening because of the commitment and daring it calls for, but that is the kind of faith that will take us through the storm. Let give another quick history lesson and then I’ll take my seat. There is a story in the annals of the British Navy about an occasion when a warship was lying in a harbor in the West Indies with five other ships from various nations. Suddenly a furious storm descended with wild terrifying winds and great waves swept into the harbor. The British captain raised the anchor and sailed out into the sea…into the very midst of the storm. Two days later he returned, battered but safe. There he saw the other ships piled up and wrecked upon the shore. It was their refusal to test the waters and face the storm; they’re clinging to a false sense of security, which had been cause for their undoing. Only the ship that had ventured out was sheltered through the storm.
Only persons whose faith is deep enough so that they forsake the security of the shallow waters and venture forth swimming, trusting in God’s Word, depending on God’s grace, relying on God’s power, will be able to come through life’s storms. Persons whose faith keeps them close to the shores will be battered and crushed. Only faith that’s deep enough to swim in can make you more than a conqueror. HOW DEEP IS YOUR FAITH? IS IT DEEP ENOUGH TO HELP YOU PICK UP THE PIECES OF YOUR LIFE AND GO ON LIVING TRIUMPHANTLY, EVEN THOUGH YOU’VE LOST A LOVE ONE? IS YOUR FAITH DEEP ENOUGH TO HELP YOU KEEP YOUR HEAD UP WHEN MISFORTUNE STRIKES AND THE VERY FOUNDATION OF YOUR LIFE IS SHAKEN? IS YOUR FAITH DEEP ENOUGH TO KEEP YOUR HEART FROM PANIC WHEN YOU’RE WONDERING “WHO LET THE DOGS OUT!?” And when you come to the end of your journey, “weary of life and the battle is won,” is your faith deep enough to make up a dying bed and then bear you on the wings of God’s eternal morning to the arms of your heavenly Father who will wipe all the tears from your eyes and give you eternal rest for your soul?
TESTING THE WATERS SHOULD BE LIKE CLIMBIMG JACOB’S LADDER. “EVERY ROUND GOES HIGHER…HIGHER. EVERY ROUND GOES HIGHER…HIGHER. EVERY ROUND GOES HIGHER AND HIGHER.” SO I ASK YOU THIS MORNING, “SINNER, DO YOU LOVE MY JESUS? SINNER, DO YOU LOVE MY JESUS? SINNER! DO YOU LOVE MY JESUS?” NOW THIS IS THE PART I LIKE, “IF YOU LOVE HIM, WHY NOT SERVE HIM? IF YOU LOVE HIM WHY NOT SERVE HIM?” THE DOORS OF THE CHURCH ARE OPEN…AND I INVITE YOU TO CLIMB WITH ME. COME ON, STEP INTO THE WATER THIS MORNING. HE WILL SUSTAIN YOU…COME ON, HE’LL KEEP YOU STEADFAST…I DON’T KNOW WHAT YOUR SITUATION IS, I DON’T KNOW WHAT STORMS MAY BE RAGING IN YOUR LIFE BUT HE WILL SHELTER YOU. SINNER, DO YOU LOVE MY JESUS?
