SCATTERED SPLINTERS
TEAR DOWN THE EXCUSES
By Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com
I. WE ARE EXPERTS WITH SPLINTERS.
A. When I was a little boy in the fifth grade, my Dad pastored a church in southern Ohio.
The altar was a beautiful, shiny, slick piece of wood.
When no one was looking I would run with all I had, jump on the altar and slide the length of it.
My Mom would scold me and occasionally whip me for slidding down the altar.
One day Mom said she would correct me no more, and that was God’s altar and He would watch over it.
I was in the church one day all by myself, it was summer time and everyone was standing out front of the church.
I ran as fast as I could and hit the altar to slide across the church, a
big splinter off the altar went through my pants and buried into my flesh from my bottom to my knee.
My Mom and all the women took me in the back in a Sunday School room and I had to pull down my pants and let the women gather around and dig that splinter out of my leg.
It still pains me to think about this, not just the huge splinter, but having to drop my drawers in front of all the women.
Mom was right, that was God’s altar and He took care of it. I am 54 and I have never desired to slide down the altar ever again.
B. SPLINTER:
A piece split off or broken.
Sliver, a small needle like piece.
A faction broke away.
To be broken in many pieces.
To have no wholeness of integrity.
C. BEAM:
A long piece of usually squared wood.
A part of the plow.
Matthew 7:3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?
4 Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?
5 Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.
D. MANY OF US LOVE TO PICK AT SPLINTERS IN OTHER PEOPLE
AND CHURCHES INSTEAD OF SEEING THE BEAM WE CARRY.
E. GOD GIVES BELIEVERS WHITE ROBES!
WHAT COLOR ROBES DO JUDGES WEAR? BLACK?
Do you think God is trying to tell us something?
F. We can never correct our problems looking at others.
It is a great sin to hide behind other people’s splinters, and fail to correctly identify our own problems.
II. WE IN THE NEW TESTAMENT CHURCH WALK WITHOUT EXCUSE.
Romans 2:1 Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself;
for thou that judgest doest the same things.
A. TO MAKE EXCUSE IS TO ACCUSE?
B. INEXCUSABLE:
Being without excuse
No justification.
Beyond pardon.
C. EXCUSE:
To release from responsibility.
To make an apology.
To try to remove blame.
To grant exemption.
Justify.
To express regret for failure.
III. WE CAN HIDE BEHIND THE SPLINTER OF GIVING EXCUSES --- I DON’T HAVE TO:
A. Life, the family, and church have been reduced to terrible manipulation when all we want to do is --- HAVE TO’S.
B. In love it is --- WANT TO --- I GET TO...
C. Where are our desires?
Psalm 84:10 For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.
Psalm 122:1 I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord.
Hebrews 10:25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more,
as ye see the day approaching.
IV. WHAT ABOUT THE SPLINTER OF COMPULSORY BEHAVIOR?
DO WE KNOW THE DIFFERENCE IN OPTIONAL AND REQUIREMENT?
Joshua 24:15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites,
in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
A. ARE WE FREE MORAL AGENTS AND CAN’T WE MAKE CHOICES?
B. CHOICES HAVE CONSEQUENCES.
1 Cor. 4:2 Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.
C. 11 Sam. 11:1 David’s choice to not go to battle will cost dearly. Playing hooky will hurt David and his family.
D. WE WALK IN A DAY THAT TO DISCUSS REQUIREMENTS IS BAD TASTE!
V. THERE IS A BIG SPLINTER THAT GOD IS LOVE. GOD LOVES ME SO MUCH --- HE DOES NOT REALLY MEAN WHAT HE SAYS, HE IS JUST TRYING TO SCARE ME.
2 Peter 2:4 For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto
judgment;
VI.THE TERRIBLE SPLINTER OF THINKING I HAVE PLENTY OF TIME.
Luke 12:19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.
20 But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?
VII.THE INFECTED SPLINTER SAYS: I WILL WAIT FOR A MORE CONVENIENT TIME.
Acts 24:25 And as he reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come Felix trembled, and answered, Go thy way for this time; when I
have a convenient season, I will call for thee.
VIII. SOME SPLINTERS DO NOT WANT TO COUNT THE COST:
I WILL HAVE TOO GIVE UP TO MUCH, I WANT TO PLAY SOME MORE ---
Mark 8:36 For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?
IX. A SLINTER CAN BE SO SMALL WE CANNOT SEE IT.
WE THINK THE BIBLE AND GOD’S WORK IS TOO HARD FOR ME...
I JUST CAN’T UNDERSTAND IT...
A. A LOVE LETTER IS NOT APPRECIATED BUT FOR THE ONE IT WAS INTENDED.
B. THE HOLY SPIRIT IS A GREAT TEACHER AND OPENS OUR MINDS.
1 Cor. 13:12 For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.
C. I DON’T KNOW HOW AN AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION KNOWS
WHEN TO SHIFT THE GEARS, BUT I STILL DRIVE.
D. BE A STUDENT AND LEARN.
X. WE LET THE SPLINTER OF PEER PRESSURE DRIVE US.
WHAT ABOUT ALL MY OLD FRIENDS?
A. Birds of a feather flock together.
B. Do you see old crows flying in a VEE formation with geese?
2 Cor. 6:14 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?
XI. WE LET THE FEAR OF FAILURE SPLINTER OUR LOVE.
I DON’T WANT TO FAIL THE LORD. I WILL WORK OUT MY PROBLEMS AND THEN COME TO HIM!
A. WE COME TO THE LORD JUST AS WE ARE, THEN THE HOLY SPIRIT WILL HELP US TO CHANGE TO WHAT GOD WANTS OF US.
Jude 1:24 Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,
XII. SPLINTERS? TEAR DOWN THE EXCUSES THAT HINDER?
A. I recently received a note from a pastor friend about splintering spirits within the church.
B. I liked this note from a pastor friend of mine, Lonnie Hatfield. Lonnie served many years as a prison minister on death row, and now pastors a Kentucky church. Lonnie has a neat sense of humor,
and has been a good friend.
C. THIS URGENT PRAYER REQUEST AND COMMENT IS FROM PASTOR LONNIE: We have been hearing so much about the “House Church” let’s not forget the “Church House”, the place God ordained for the assembling of all the parts of His Body to actually come together and stand united jointly fit together as “One Man” and to be seen as such, not just a bunch of scattered parts. Pray that we do not isolate the parts
even more and create a bigger freak than what we already display and call it “His Body” Continue to pray for the “House Church” that it will become the place to develop and hone body parts for the assembling together, as it was intended.
XIII. SYNERGISM IS A POWERFUL FORCE, COME TOGETHER WITH YOUR BRETHREN.
A. SYNERGISM:
INTERACTION OF PEOPLE WORKING TOGETHER AS A GROUP
SO THAT THE TOTAL EFFECT IS GREATER THAN THE SUM OF THE INDIVIDUAL EFFORT.
B. ONE HORSE CAN PULL 800 POUNDS, ANOTHER HORSE CAN PULL 700 POUNDS.
WHAT CAN THEY PULL TOGETHER WITH NO EXCUSES?
1500 POUNDS?
NO, 2,300 POUNDS, THERE IS POWER IN COMING TOGETHER.
C. A CHURCH LEADER WROTE ME THIS:
I will edit the note just a little.
I need you and you need me, we are a team.
We should come together as a whole, not splintered pieces doing our own thing. I want nothing more than for all of our CHURCHES AND PASTORS than to actually come together and stand united, jointly fit together as "One"... and to be seen as ... not just a bunch of scattered, splintered parts."
It’s been my experience that many preachers participate in little to nothing related to fellowship with the brethren. The parts seems so scattered and doing their own thing. We’ve prayed, and we try to communicate with others to no avail.
It would seem to me that if we don’t believe in "scattered, splintered parts," and if we do believe in "unity of all the brotherhood"... then we’d work together in "unity."
.....Let’s all scratch our heads and say: Hum? Huuuuummm?
D. LET US BE MORE THAN SCATTERED SPLINTERS!
MAY WE COME TOGETHER IN A SENSE OF BROTHERHOOD AND STAND UNITED AT THE FOOT OF THE CROSS!
You help cover my weakness, and I will help you.
His servant, Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com
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