FACING THE GIANTS
Becoming a Wholehearted Christian – Dealing with the Giant of Apathy
Colossians 3:23-25; Proverbs 3:5-6;Jeremiah 29:13-14
INTRODUCTION: In his six years of coaching, Grant Taylor has never had a winning season. Even his hope of a new season is squelched when the best player on his Shiloh Eagles decides to transfer schools. After losing their first three games of the season, the coach discovers a group of fathers are plotting to have him fired. Combined with pressures at home, Coach Taylor has lost hope in his battle against ear and failure.
However, and unexpected challenge helps him find a purpose bigger than just victories. Daring o trust God to do the impossible, Coach Taylor and the Eagles discover how faith plays out on the field, and off.
With God, all things are possible!
Today and for several Sundays afterward, we are going to glimpse at snippets of Coach Taylor’s transformation. He will face his giants, and we will face ours. The end result will be the buttressing of our faith, and the refreshing of our purpose before God.
I WHAT GOD’S WORD SAYS ABOUT APATHY
A Colossians 3:23-25 23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, 24 since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.
25 Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for his wrong, and there is no favoritism.
B Proverbs 3:5-6 5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.
C Jeremiah 29:13-14 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you," declares the LORD, "and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you," declares the LORD, "and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile."
II THE PROBLEM WITH NOT BEING WHOLEHEARTED
A Half-heartedness produces apathy
B Half-heartedness produces bad attitudes
C Half-heartedness produces mediocre results
1 We live mediocre lives as believers
2 We produce mediocre results as believers
a Especially when God expects our best as believers
Need I remind you of Matthew 25, ……
Matthew 25:14-30 14 "Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his property to them. 15 To one he gave five talents of money, to another two talents, and to another one talent, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. 16 The man who had received the five talents went at once and put his money to work and gained five more. 17 So also, the one with the two talents gained two more. 18 But the man who had received the one talent went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.
19 "After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them.
20 The man who had received the five talents brought the other five. ’Master,’ he said, ’you entrusted me with five talents. See, I have gained five more.’ 21 "His master replied, ’Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’ 22 "The man with the two talents also came. ’Master,’ he said, ’you entrusted me with two talents; see, I have gained two more.’ 23 "His master replied, ’Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’ 24 "Then the man who had received the one talent came. ’Master,’ he said, ’I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. 25 So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’
26 "His master replied, ’You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? 27 Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest. 28 "’Take the talent from him and give it to the one who has the ten talents. 29 For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. 30 And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
5 Simple Principles:
• God gives us EVERYTHING we need to worship and serve Him
• God expects us to use EVERYTHING he has given us to Worship Him
• Worship is a “do something” activity
• Wholehearted worship produces results
• Half-hearted worship produces regrets
God always desired our whole hearted devotion to Him. Sin got in the way and made half-heartedness a Giant in out lives. A Giant we need to face and conquer.
• God expects us to respect the level of commitment he wants from us.
• When we do not give God our best, others will not give God their best.
o Leaders, if you do not give God your best, do not expect those you lead to give God their best either.
o Parents, if you do not give God your best, do not expect your children to give God their best either!
o We will get ourselves caught in the trap of diminishing returns.
• When we are committed to doing our best (to defeating the giant of half-heartedness), we:
o Have the greatest influence on others
o Produce our best work for Christ
o We received God’s blessing and reward
o We live and love God with our whole heart
III WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A WHOLEHEARTED CHRISTIAN
A EVERY activity I do is done for God, regardless of what it is!
B EVERY activity I do is done from my heart
1 “all your heart” (Col) – literally, “out of soul”
2 “all your heart” (Prov) – My total personality
3 “all your heart” (Jer) – Become intelligent – one stem
4 Every activity I do is a SPIRITUAL activity BEFORE it is a PHYSICAL activity
C EVERY activity I do is done with a dependence on God to accomplish it.
1 “lean not on my own” means that I do not prop myself up by myself.
2 The result of leaning on God is that my paths are straight
a God’s guidance
b Removal of obstructions
D EVERY activity I do is done SEEKING God
1 God tells me that He can be found
2 God tells me that I need to seek Him
3 God tells me that there is never an activity that He cannot be involved in
4 God tells me, that I make the choice to be either whole hearted, or half-hearted!
Let me close with this:
John 12:1-8 1 Six days before the Passover, Jesus arrived at Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 2 Here a dinner was given in Jesus’ honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him. 3 Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. 4 But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, 5 "Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages." 6 He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it. 7 "Leave her alone," Jesus replied. "[It was intended] that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial. 8 You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me."
Mark adds this incident about the encounter not found in John
Mark 14:9 9 I tell you the truth, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her."
Now, why would Jesus want the whole world to remember this event? Paul gives us the answer, ….
1 Corinthians 11:15 but that if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For long hair is given to her as a covering.
Mary worship was so much more than the ointment she poured over the head of Christ, she took that which brought her glory, (her hair) and used it to worship Christ. Wholehearted worship that would be remembered for ever.
Would you consider your life as a believer a wholehearted life for Christ?
What areas of your life have your surrendered to the giant of half-heartedness?
What areas of your life are you going to change from half-hearted to wholehearted?
• Parents, how about the spiritual upbringing of your children? I see far more children here for church than Sunday School. What will it take to be wholehearted in this area? Just a little planning.
• Men, we have been so half-hearted in our prayer. To the point that once again, prayer has stopped on Friday evening, and often there are only one or two in my Study on Sunday morning.
• In our giving, we approach the end of the year, not indebt, but unable to do many of the things we wanted to do.
• In our response to those visiting, we have thought someone else will approach them, knowing full well that God wanted us!
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