Don't Listen to the Depression

Editor's Note:  Thank you to Catherine Shu of the blog "Shu Flies," for her kind permission to use her writing in this post.  While I have encouraged the use and reprinting of my work on this blog as long as it is not used to make a profit for anyone.  (I believe the word of God should remain free.)  I would ask that you respect Catherine's copyright and not use or reprint her work without permission.  Thank you.

*****

According to suicide.org:

Untreated Depression is the Number One Cause of Suicide

www.suicide.org

I struggled with those feelings for a long time.  My parents came to visit me during my first semester of graduate school.  I started crying during lunch and apologized for being a horrible daughter.

My Dad said, “I know what that is.  That’s the depression talking.  It will say things like that, but you just can’t listen to it.”

I remember feeling surprised that I had the option not to listen.  My anxiety was almost a talisman.  If I fretted about doing poorly in school, I would succeed.  If I worried about something bad happening to the people I loved, I could somehow protect them.

          Catherine Shu, Shu Flies, Dealing With Depression and Living Abroad Part 2

It seems as if there is an epidemic of depression throughout the world today.  I talk to people all the time who complain about depression.  I think this passage from Shu Flies illustrates an interesting point about depression:

"My Dad said, 'I know what that is.  That’s the depression talking.  It will say things like that, but you just can’t listen to it.'”

I’ve lived through major depression.  I’m not talking about that feeling of having “the blues” or feeling kind of sad for a day or two.  I’m talking about the type of depression that demobilizes you: a spiral into hopelessness.  I can tell you, Ms. Shu’s father has it exactly right.  It does speak to you. 

It speaks to you about your worthlessness.  It tells you that you can never be happy.  It tells you that people can never care for you or love you.  It speaks. 

But as a Christian I’ve learned a bit about depression.  Depression is a spirit.  If depression can speak, then it’s a spirit.  Depression is spiritual.  It's a form of demonic influence.  There are others:  Schizophrenia, Paranoia, Bi-polar Disorder, and Depression, they all have the common symptom of hearing voices that speak to you. 

 Today I want to write about the root of depression.  I’ve studied this out.  I think the saddest thing in the world is a Christian; a follower of Jesus who struggles with depression and I want to deal with this from a Christian perspective.  There is a root to depression and I believe it can be overcome.

Matthew 18:21-35 (NKJV)
^18:21 Then Peter came to Him and said, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?" ²² Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven. ²³ Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. ²⁴ And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents. ²⁵ But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made. ²⁶ The servant therefore fell down before him, saying, 'Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.' ²⁷ Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt. ²⁸ But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, 'Pay me what you owe!' ²⁹ So his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you all.' ³⁰ And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt. ³¹ So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were very grieved, and came and told their master all that had been done. ³² Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, 'You wicked servant! I forgave you all that debt because you begged me. ³³ Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?' ³⁴ And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him. ³⁵ So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses."

Who Speaks

This scripture mentions “the torturers.”  I think this is an interesting choice of words.  Jesus, in this parable, refers to them as torturers or in the King Kames version, they’re called “the tormentors.”  Look at the definition of torture:

1 : anguish of body or mind
2 : the infliction of severe pain especially to punish or coerce
Mirriam-Webster Dictionary

A torturer is one who inflicts torture on others.  So what does Jesus mean when he refers to the torturers?  Look at the book of Job for a moment.

In the first chapter of the book, Job, a blameless and upright man, loses his wealth, his family and his health all in one day.  He loses everything.  We know the story:

Job 1:6-7 (NKJV)
^1:6 Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. ⁷ And the Lord said to Satan, "From where do you come?" So Satan answered the Lord and said, "From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking back and forth on it."

So God calls the angels and among them comes Satan.  God points out Job to Satan as a blameless and upright man who worships God.  But Satan tells God that Job worships Him because God has protected and blessed Job.  If things went wrong in Job’s life, Job would curse God.  So God allows Satan to attack Job.   Satan takes all of Job’s possessions, kills his servants and his children and afflicts Job with boils.  Does that accurately depict what we have defined as torture?  I would say it is an exact picture of torture.  In addition, look at this scripture for a moment:

Revelation 12:7-9 (NKJV)
^12:7 And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, ⁸ but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. ⁹ So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

I believe these are the torturers.  It is certainly a strategy of Satan to torment, wear people down and try to turn them away from God.  This is exactly what he was attempting with Job.  He attacked Job in a way that would cause him to turn away from God.

The devil attacks us mainly with lies.  Jesus refers to him as the “father of lies.”  If we look at the Garden of Eden, he deceived Eve through a series of lies.  In those things he lied about God’s character and made Him out to be a liar, “You will not surely die.”  Through that one lie Satan took down the entire human race.  His strategy today is the same.  He continues to attack with lies and attempts to turn us away from God.

He does that by lying to us about our worth and value not only to ourselves, but our worth to God as well.  It is an attempt to turn us away from God by impugning God’s character and desire for relationship with people.  If we know God and his desire for us then we should be joyful.  After all, Joy is the character of salvation.  Our relationship with God should be defined by joy. 

1 Peter 1:7-8 (NKJV)
^1:7 that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, ⁸ whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory,

Joy inexpressible; we should be unable to express how joyful we are in Jesus.  If that's true than why do so many Christians suffer with depression?  Why are so many Christians tormented and beaten down by depression?  I believe the answer to that is found in scripture.

Opening the Door to the Torturers

As Christians, God protects us.  He has built a hedge around us.  This was Satan’s complaint about Job.

Job 1:8-10 (NKJV)
^1:8 Then the Lord said to Satan, "Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil?" ⁹ So Satan answered the Lord and said, "Does Job fear God for nothing? ¹⁰ Have You not made a hedge around him, around his household, and around all that he has on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land.

Satan complains that Job only worships God because God has protected and blessed him.  As Christians, that’s something that God does for us as well. That isn’t to say that we don’t have troubles and afflictions, of course we do.  Life is full of trouble and affliction, but God has built a hedge around us to protect us.

The problem is that we open the door to demonic influence on our own.  Through certain actions we pierce the hedge of protection that’s built around us.

Ecclesiastes 10:8 (KJV)
^10:8 He that digs a pit shall fall into it; and whoever breaks a hedge, a serpent shall bite him.

The phrase, “a serpent will bite him,” is interesting.  Who is the serpent of old?  Satan is referred to as the serpent of old.  If we pierce the hedge then we’re in danger of a serpent’s bite. 

We can do things that open the door to demonic influence.  There are a number of things that pierce the hedge.  Involvement in the occult or the paranormal will open that door to demonic influence.  Certain sins like alcohol or drug use, fornication and pornography are all sins that carry a link to demonic influence.  There is one thing that’s more common.  How we deal with hurt and disappointment, especially with regard to other people can open the door to demonic influence.  According to our text unforgivensss can pierce the hedge of protection around us.

Look at what our text is about.  A man comes to settle accounts with his servants.  He is looking to be repaid for loans that he’s made to them.  There is one man who has borrowed a huge sum of many from the master:  An amount that he can never repay.  When the master asks for that repayment, this man begs for more time and the master forgives the debt. 

This same man who has been forgiven this huge debt comes to a man who owes him a small amount and demands payment.  When the man begs for the same mercy the first man received, the Bible tells us that he is sent to prison until the debt is paid.  The first man shows no mercy and refuses to give him more time or to forgive the debt.  It is at this point, because he, the first man, doesn’t forgive that he is sent to the torturers.

So a lack of forgiveness also pierces the hedge of protection.  And opens us up to demonic assault, “A serpent will bite him.” It’s so sad because I’ve met so many people who can’t forgive.  A woman one time came to our church in Riverside who was suffering.  I preached a sermon on forgiveness; simple forgiveness.  This woman was very angry at me, because she said, “I refuse to forgive my father.” 

The interesting thing about forgiveness is that forgiveness is for us.  Our forgiveness does nothing for the other person.  The chances are, they don’t even know you’re suffering, or if they do, they don’t care.  When we forgive we release ourselves from the bondage and torment of unforgiveness.

Hebrews 12:15 (NKJV)
^12:15 looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled;

Unforgiveness causes a root of bitterness to spring up in us.  Have you met someone who can’t forgive slights or hurts?  They become bitter and angry about everything.  It really ruins their lives in so many ways.  People lose relationships because of their bitterness.  Who wants to be around a bitter, angry person?  Bitterness is an ugly thing.  Some diseases, specifically arthritis has a root in bitterness.  Bitterness comes from unforgiveness.  People can’t forgive others and it begins to torment them. 

Our text warns us about the consequences of not forgiving those who’ve hurt us.

Matthew 18:35 (NKJV)So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses."

What does this say?  If we won’t forgive then we are also in danger of being delivered to the torturers.  Forgiveness is essential to our salvation. 

Matthew 6:14-15 (NKJV)
^6:14 "For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. ¹⁵ But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

If we want to be forgiven of our sin, we must first forgive.  We need to forgive those who have mistreated us.  We also need to forgive ourselves.  Sometimes, the ones who we’re hardest on are us.  We have done things that we don’t think can be forgiven. 

I have always found it very sad when someone is looking for the forgiveness and love of Christ, but can’t find it, because they don’t think what they’ve done can be forgiven by God.  People have told me, “God can’t forgive me.”  And I quote scripture to them:  “If we will confess our sins, God is faithful to forgive.” (1 John 1:9)  They always say, “But you don’t know what I’ve done!”  Do you know what they’re really saying?  How can God forgive me when I can’t forgive myself? 

How much self-inflicted torment do we accept when we think God won’t forgive us because we can’t forgive ourselves?  When we think we're unforgivable, we're saying that the peace of God is out of reach.

Philippians 4:6-7 (NKJV)
^4:6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; ⁷ and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

We need the peace of God.  It’s the peace of God that guards our hearts…and what else?  The peace of God guards our minds.  It surpasses all understanding.  We can’t even understand the peace of God, but it protects us.  Forgiveness is key to the peace of God.

Overcoming Depression

So in order to protect ourselves from depression we need to practice forgiveness.  We need to be forgiving.  That’s not always easy, though, is it?  People have inflicted us with some painful things.  We have beaten ourselves down.  It’s not always easy to let go of hurts and sufferings.  Look at this:

Luke 17:3-5 (NKJV)
^17:3 Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. ⁴ And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, 'I repent,' you shall forgive him." ⁵ And the apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith."

Jesus is telling the disciples they need to forgive.  These are the men who spent three years with him.  These are the men who knew Jesus intimately; they met him in the flesh.  He tells them they need to forgive and what is their prayer?  “Increase our faith.”  A lot of forgiveness is just simply turning it over to God.  God has said, “I will Judge, I will avenge.”  He has said he will avenge our hurts.  But it takes faith to turn those things over to Him, doesn’t it? 

We can see from this that we need to forgive.  Forgiveness keeps us within God’s hedge of protection.  We want to treat these things with medication, but in my mind medication opens us up to even more demonic influence.  Look at this that I saw on Twitter, recently.

“In the 60’s and 70’s people took acid to make the world weird.  Now the world is weird and people take Prozac to make it look normal.”

Prozac doesn’t cure anything; it only changes the way your mind works.  It masks and hides the problem but it doesn’t cure them.  If you want peace, peace comes from God.  What good does it do you to hold onto hurts and all those things that make you bitter.  What is the good thing about bitterness and suffering?  I have never understood why people don’t forgive.  God requires forgiveness from us.  It’s in our best interest to forgive.

Establishing a Pattern of Worship

I am going to say something to you which will sound strange. It even sounds strange to me as I say it, because we are not used to hearing it within our Christian fellowships. We are saved to worship God. All that Christ has done for us in the past and all that He is doing now leads to this one end.

– A.W. Tozer -- Whatever Happened to Worship

He’s speaking about the importance of worship:  How the promise of God comes through worship.  Today, I want to take the time to examine worship:  What it is, what does it mean to our lives?   How many of us realize that worship is necessary to the Christian Walk?  I want to look at worship because I believe there are three key things that demonstrate the importance of worship.

Genesis 12:6-8
6 Abram passed through the land to the place of Shechem, as far as the terebinth tree of Moreh. And the Canaanites were then in the land.7 Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your descendants I will give this land.” And there he built an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him.8 And he moved from there to the mountain east of Bethel, and he pitched his tent with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east; there he built an altar to the Lord and called on the name of the Lord.

Faith Begins Through Worship

In our text we see Abram.  This takes place after he has heard the call of God to follow God to a place He would show Abram.  He has picked up and left his father’s house and he has traveled to Canaan:  The land of promise.  This is the land that God said that he would give to Abram’s descendents.  He arrives there and God shows him the land.  God tells him, “Look around this is the land I will give to your descendents. Abram sees the promise of God and builds an altar.

He’s seen the promise of God and it has moved him, to do what?  What is an altar for?  The Hebrew word for Altar comes from the Hebrew word for slaughter, so he has built this altar to offer sacrifices to God.  Sacrifice is a form of worship.  He’s worshipping God.  He’s seen the promise; glimpsed what God will do and it has driven him to worship. 

Can you look at your life and see what God is doing there?  Can you see the promise that’s on the horizon for you if you will remain in the will of God?  What does it motivate you to do?  Does it motivate you to worship?  Worship is the natural thing and that’s what Abram did, he worshipped God. 

He sees the promise of God and he builds an altar to worship the one who has given the promise and in that moment something is established in his life.  This isn’t a one-time shot for Abram.  He begins to worship at many points in his journey.  A pattern of worship is established in his life.

How many times do we see Abraham, build an altar?  He builds altars over and over throughout his life.  Worship has become a pattern in his life and we can see from his life that  worship strengthened his faith. 

Look at the Book of geneisis, in Chapter 12 we see that Abram hears from God and even though he is raised in the pagan environment of Ur he recognizes the voice of God and responds to the call that’s there.  God calls him to go to a place that I will show you.  Abram leaves the house of his father, follows God to that place and he worships God there. 

But then he leaves that place where he has worshipped God and travels down to Egypt.  He becomes afraid that the Egyptians will kill him so he tells his wife to say that she is his sister so protect himself.  Where has the faith gone?  What happened to the man who believed God?  He has left the place of worship and his faith has been lost.  Afterward he returns to bethel from Egypt.

Genesis 13:3-4
3 And he went on his journey from the South as far as Bethel, to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Bethel and Ai,4 to the place of the altar which he had made there at first. And there Abram called on the name of the Lord.

He rebuilds the altar that he had built before and in the process his faith is reanimated.  This is the time when Lot’s shepherds and Abram’s shepherds begin to fight, so Abraham tells Lot pick a direction and go that way I’ll go the other way.  Lot looks to toward Sodom.  He sees that in that direction he will have more opportunity to find prosperity so he chooses to go in that direction.  Abram goes in the opposite direction out into the desert; into the place that God had showed him and trusted God for provision.  Lot has chosen the direction through the wisdom of mankind.  He sees a better chance for success so he goes that way.  Abram on the other hand, has chosen to trust God and has chosen his direction in faith.  he stays in the Land God has promised his descendants and worships God.

Finally, we see the powerful faith of Abram, who by now is called Abraham, in the test that God gives him when he asks him to sacrifice his son Isaac.  Issac is the child of Abraham’s old age.  He is the child that God said will be the heir through whom the promise is fulfilled.  So when God asks him to sacrifice Isaac he is really testing whether or not Abraham has the faith to obey God.  Remember, he had a son through Sarah’s handmaiden, Hagar, because they didn’t believe that God could give barren Sarah a child.  So this is a test to see whether Abraham can obey God, knowing what’s at stake. 

Abraham responds to the test by placing Isaac on the altar and preparing to sacrifice him.  This is a great act of faith look at this statement regarding Abraham’s faith:

Hebrews 11:17-19
^11:17 By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, ¹⁸ of whom it was said, "In Isaac your seed shall be called," ¹⁹ concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense.

He had becomes so full of faith that he knew if necessary for God to keep the promise that he would raise Isaac from the dead.  This is a far cry from the man who doubted that God could deliver him from the Egyptians. 

What’s the key to Abraham’s faith?  I believe it is the act of worshipping God.  Every time God spoke the promise to Abraham he built an altar and worshipped God.  He called on the name of the Lord.

Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.  Abraham’s faith was ignited by the word of God spoken in the form of a promise.  But the building of the altar signifies an openness to hearing from God.  It isn’t automatic that if you speak the word of God that everyone you speak it to will respond I faith.  If it was then everyone you witnessed to would get saved.  We know that doesn’t happen.  But it is an openness to the word of God that allows it to build faith in our lives.  Worship opens us up to the word of God and the will of God and establishes in us the faith that God is a God who will deliver on His promises.  That’s why worship is so important in our church services.  It’s also why we have worhip service before the preaching. 

Here are some interesting statistics:

Nearly two-thirds of regular church attendees have not experienced God’s presence in a church service.  48% of regular church attendees have not experienced God’s presence in the last year. But yet 65% (two-thirds) of church-going adults are very satisfied with the ability to worship God afforded by their church.

The problem here is that there has not been a pattern of real worship that has been built in most churches.  It’s too bad that we don’t have to build altars anymore because people come to church and expect the presence of God to just fall on them:  That it is God’s responsibility to pour Himself out.  Some churches have professional worship groups, the have the perfect mood inducing lighting, all the right high tech effects.  Those things induce a mood but they don’t always bring about heartfelt worship.  There isn’t a formula; worship doesn’t come from singing, clapping, mood lighting and musicianship.  It comes from the heart.   It comes from being inspired by the promise of God.  That’s what motivated Abraham.  We have to ask ourselves are we inspired by what God is doing in our lives?  Is that what motivates us, or are we just going through the motions?  Do you want to feel the presence of God?  If you do then you need to worship from your heart and you ill feel the presence of God, powerfully.  Song service and the preaching will come to life for you because God will show up.

The House of God is Established in Worship

The word Bethel means “House of God.”  This is the place where God dwells, this is the place where Abram built that first altar.  This is also the place where Jacob sees the vision of the ladder of God and names it Bethel. 

Genesis 28:16-19
16 Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.”17 And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!”  18 Then Jacob rose early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put at his head, set it up as a pillar, and poured oil on top of it.19 And he called the name of that place Bethel; but the name of that city had been Luz previously.

When Abraham was there it was called Luz it was built by the Canaanites, who lived there.  It wasn’t called Bethel until Jacob’s time.  He called it that in a time of worship.  That’s what he was doing when he raised up a stone and anointed it.  He was worshipping God.  This is the same place where Abram built that first altar; it is the same place where Abram worshipped God.  The worship of God in that place established it as the House of God.  Jacob says, “this is none other than the House of God,” and what is it?  It’s a place of worship.

Take a moment and look forward in history into the nation of Israel.   Look into a time after the people have received their inheritance; after the four hundred years of captivity in Egypt.  This is centuries after Jacob’s time.

Judges 20:18
18 Then the children of Israel arose and went up to the house of God to inquire of God. They said, “Which of us shall go up first to battle against the children of Benjamin?” The Lord said, “Judah first!”

Judges 20:26-27
26 Then all the children of Israel, that is, all the people, went up and came to the house of God and wept. They sat there before the Lord and fasted that day until evening; and they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the Lord.27 So the children of Israel inquired of the Lord (the ark of the covenant of God was there in those days,

Judges 21:2-4
2 Then the people came to the house of God, and remained there before God till evening. They lifted up their voices and wept bitterly,3 and said, “O Lord God of Israel, why has this come to pass in Israel, that today there should be one tribe missing in Israel?”4 So it was, on the next morning, that the people rose early and built an altar there, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings.

This place is established as the House of God and it was established there all those years ago when Abram first worshipped there.  Worship establishes the place of God.

Our church is in an old building.  There have been a number of businesses in that building.  One of them, a KTV business, where men pay women to entertain them as they drank and sing karaoke, not really the type of business that would establish the place as the House of God.   But now it’s our church, now it’s a House of God where we regularly experience the presence of God.  What establishes it as the House of God?  It’s the worship of God by God’s people. 

But let’s make this personal for a moment.  If you worship God from your heart, will your heart not be established as a House of God.  If your heart is established as a dwelling place of God what fruit would be visible from that? 

Luke 6:45
45 “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

Worship will build in your heart a [ace where God can dwell and we will see the fruit of a heart given over to God.  What will that fruit look like?

Psalm 45:7
7 You love righteousness and hate wickedness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of gladness more than Your companions.

God is not a God of depression.  He’s not a God of suicide.  God is a God of Joy.  Do you want the joy of salvation to be the fruit of your life?  Worship will usher in the oil of gladness.  As we build a habitation for God in our hearts, then out of our hearts will come the abundance of what is there, which is the oil of gladness.  Worship establishes the dwelling of God in our hearts, in other words worship is what will bring about the indwelling of God in our hearts.

Worship is a Refuge

Jeroboam, when he was king of Israel desecrated the place of God through the worship of idols. 

1 Kings 12:32-33
32 Jeroboam ordained a feast on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, like the feast that was in Judah, and offered sacrifices on the altar. So he did at Bethel, sacrificing to the calves that he had made. And at Bethel he installed the priests of the high places which he had made.33 So he made offerings on the altar which he had made at Bethel on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, in the month which he had devised in his own heart. And he ordained a feast for the children of Israel, and offered sacrifices on the altar and burned incense.

He perverted the House of God by setting up an abomination there.  In time the people came to be ashamed of that perversion of God’s house.

Jeremiah 48:13
13 Moab shall be ashamed of Chemosh,
As the house of Israel was ashamed of Bethel, their confidence.

The word translated as confidence can be more properly translated as refuge.  So what is this saying?  It’s saying that the people of God came to be ashamed of that that was once their refuge.  Jeroboam, through his worship of golden calves in the house fo God caused God to depart from that place.  We are in danger of the same thing if we allow some form of idolatry to take the place of God in our hearts. 

What do we worship?  We worship the thing that has the greatest priority in our hearts.    It’s that thing we put before God:  That thing that keeps us out of church.  The thing that we worship is the thing that keeps us from worshipping God. 

I spoke to a young man who didn’t want to serve God because he knew that if served God he wouldn’t be able to be sexually immoral.  His conscience wouldn’t allow it.  He knew that. So Sexual Immorality is thing that he worships.

He is in bondage to that thing, there is no place of refuge from that bondage available to him, until he puts God back in the place of worship in his heart. 

What is a place of refuge?  In our times we have appointed places called Wildlife Refuges.  These are places where wildlife can live without fear of being hunted and killed by men.  They are a place of safety and security.

That’s what bethel was for Israel.  It was a place where they could have confidence that God would protect them and provide for them; safety and security.  That place of refuge was destroyed by jeroboam as he worshipped idols there.  This is the last place in the Bible where bethel is referred to as the place of God.  The last mention of Bethel is in the Book of Amos:

Amos 7:11-13
11 “For thus Amos has said: ‘Jeroboam shall die by the sword, And Israel shall surely be led away captive From their own land.’ ”  12 Then Amaziah said to Amos: “Go, you seer! Flee to the land of Judah. There eat bread, And there prophesy.13 But never again prophesy at Bethel, For it is the king’s sanctuary, And it is the royal residence.”

The people have grown ashamed of Bethel.

Worshipping God creates for us a refuge from the bondage of sin, from the assault of the one who seeks to destroy us.  How many times have you gone into church, bogged down, feeling the weight of the day or some assault from the pit of hell.  You walk in, allow yourself to enter into a place of worship, allow God’s presence to be established once again in your heart, and you are buoyed up, leaving glad once more.  That’s the power of refuge.  It’s what makes the worship group such an important part of the service; they are the ones who usher us into worship.  They are the ones who, in a sense, build that altar.  But don’t get me wrong worship is an individual responsibility.  Worship should come from the heart.  It’s the opening of our hearts to God and shouldn’t be taken lightly.  Not giving it all we’re worth profanes it.  

Worship can establish and strengthen our faith.  Worship can build the House of God.  Worship can be a refuge from the assaults of hell.  It depends on you.

One final thought, we think of worship as a personal thing: That we are the only ones affected by the intensity of our worship, but that isn’t true.    Abraham’s worship built his faith, but it also built the faith of Isaac and Jacob.  Have you thought about how much faith it took for Isaac to let his father offer him on the altar?

Isaac was about twenty and Abraham about one hundred twenty.  Isaac could have outrun him certainly.  Could have fought him, but we don’t see that.  Isaac submitted to the sacrifice.  Where did Jacob learn to worship God by standing up a stone and pouring oil on it.?  He learned that from his father and grandfather.  The House of God was established by one man’s worship but it remained the House of God for all of Israel for centuries.  The lack of worship on the part of Jeroboam destroyed that place as a place of refuge.

Do you realize that your faith is dependent on your pastor’s?  His faith is dependent in part on yours.  Together we strengthen each other’s faith, so we owe it to each other to build our faith as much as we can and we do that partly through worship.  Together we establish a refuge from the assaults of the devil as we come into the sanctuary and worship.  We, through worship, make it a refuge.  Let’s establish a pattern of worship in our lives and see the promises of God come true in our lives.

Who's Excellent?

The people in the above video are doing excellent things.  They are doing things that are extremely difficult.  They have to put great effort and time into learning and perfecting these things.  But they have no eternal value.  These things are to please men not God.  And all of them have succeeded.  These things are impressive but they’re of little value.  They’re entertaining and exciting, but what value do they have beyond that?

“Human excellence means nothing unless it works with the consent of God.”

Euripides

Today I want to explore excellence within the framework of the will of God. 

Colossians 3:22-25 (NKJV)
^3:22 Bondservants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh, not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but in sincerity of heart, fearing God. ²³ And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, ²⁴ knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ. ²⁵ But he who does wrong will be repaid for what he has done, and there is no partiality.

Are We Excellent?

According to Mirriam-Webster Dictionaries, excellence can be defined as:  very good of its kind: FIRST-CLASS

"Excellence in any art or profession is attained only by hard and persistent work."

Theodore Martin

Have you taken any time to examine what you’re doing for God?  What are the things you’re doing for God.  Have you set aside any time for Him and His purposes? 

Excellence is seen in a number of ways:  I’m reading Steve Jobs biography right now, and there’s an interesting anecdote about jobs’ stepfather.  He’s the type of man that likes to restore cars and do things with his hands.  At one point Jobs was watching and helping as his father built a cabinet.  And his father was taking time to make sure that everything about the cabinet was done right and looked beautiful…even the parts no one would ever see.  He used high-quality wood even for the back of the cabinet. That’s excellence.

Wanting to be sure that the finished product is high-quality; not throwing something together that looks good on the surface but taking the time and putting in the thought to do it right.  That’s doing something with excellence.

In our day and hour so many things are done to give the appearance of excellence without actually being excellent.  For example, I was reading about a car company in Finland that developed a high-end electric car.  These cars look like sports cars, they have beautiful interiors.  They sell for more than $100,000 USD each.  But a couple of weeks ago every single car that they’ve built was recalled, because they have a fire risk.  They spontaneously burn up.  The engineering on the battery system, that no one would see, was not up to industry standards.  They have the appearance of quality but they’re not excellent. 

This translates to how we do things for God as well.  If you look around at the church world you see beautiful modern buildings, with all the latest technology, all of the programs.  I know one church that even has a Starbuck’s right on their campus.  On the surface they’re the ideal of the modern, “Super Church.”  I’m not saying that these things are bad in and of themselves.  But inside, people are not involved in real evangelism or winning sinners to Jesus.

We used to have a booth at a night market type event in Riverside and for a while they put us next to this other church.  I listened to the way people talked to people who stopped at their booth.  They talked about all the programs…”We have a singles ministry, we have a volleyball ministry, we have coffee shop and Christian bookstore.  Who are they trying to get to the church with those kinds of things?  As a sinner I never would have set foot in a Christian bookstore.  So whom are they trying to reach…other Christians, maybe?  So then evangelism just becomes an exercise at getting people in the door.  It’s not about getting them saved; it’s about filling the pews.  I wonder if God looks at these things and calls it excellence.  Is that meeting the standards of God will?  Or is it putting the face of evangelism on a marketing strategy. 

In my last post I talked about how each of us has strengths that can overcome each other’s weaknesses:  That maybe you’re strong in an area where someone else is weak.  In that way we can overcome our weaknesses and as a church we can be effective at reaching people. That’s why Christianity isn’t an individual pursuit.  That’s why the church was intended to be a body of believers.  But excellence as a body is dependent on us being excellent as individuals.  If all of us are doing what we do with excellence then our efforts as a group will be excellent. 

If you’re involved in ministry, take a look at your ministry efforts, are you doing what you’re doing with excellence?  If you’re not involved with your church’s ministry, is that meting the standards of God’s calling on your life?  Are you excellent in the things of life, work, family, marriage, but not doing anything for God? 

What does our scripture say?  “And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men,” (Col 3:23)

The first part of this scripture is in this context:  Do what you do as if you’re doing it for God.  Do what you do with excellence, not just to look good, but because it’s the right thing to do.  That means every aspect of our worldly life.  We need to obey our bosses, because it’s the right thing to do, not because we want to look good for them so they will reward us with a raise or a promotion or whatever.  It also means every aspect of our spiritual life as well.  We should desire to be as much like Jesus as possible, and jesus did everything with excellence.

The Excellence of God – Being like Him

God is into us being excellent, because God is excellent.

Job 37:23 (NKJV)
^37:23 As for the Almighty, we cannot find Him; He is excellent in power, In judgment and abundant justice; He does not oppress.

Psalms 8:1 (NKJV)
^8:1 To the Chief Musician. On the instrument of Gath. A Psalm of David. O Lord, our Lord, How excellent is Your name in all the earth, Who have set Your glory above the heavens!

I look around me and marvel at the earth and the things of the earth.  How everything fits together and works together perfectly.  Look at your hand for a moment.  It’s the perfect tool isn’t it?  You can use it to do so many things.  How your body is made.  So many things such complexity and every thing works together perfectly.  How your mind works alone is amazing.  There is a book called “Fearfully and Wonderfully Made” that talks about how our bodies work. 

 In our bodies alone we can see the excellence of God.  How much more is it evident in the rest of the universe?  Look at this scripture:

Romans 1:20 (NKJV)
^1:20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse,

We can see God in the details of creation.  God’s excellence shows in his creation.  Who is the creator of the universe?

John 1:1-3 (NKJV)
^1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ² He was in the beginning with God. ³ All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.

According to John, Jesus is the creator of the universe; everything that was made was made through Him.  He’s the creative power of the universe.  So the question becomes, who are we?  Are we His disciples?  If we’re here to learn from Him and be like Him then we are His disciples. 

That’s the definition of a disciple.  Not just someone who learns but someone who desire to be like their teacher.  When mwe go to school we’re learners, right?  We go there to learn many things, does that make us disciples of our teachers?  No, because the desire to be like the teacher is what makes us a disciple.

I was talking to a brother in the Zhongli church, the other day and he was telling me about one of the new guys in the church.  He talks to him; he was showing up late for church and this brother tells him, “I’m never late, because I want to get all I can get from God.”  So the guy listens to him and begins to come to church on time. That’s the discipleship process.  That’s what being a disciple is about being like the one who teaches.  So if we are disciples of Christ then we should desire to be like Him in every way.  That includes doing what we do with excellence.

I want to look at two men of the Bible who did the things they did with excellence.  The first is Joseph.  We know the story of Joseph.  His brothers sold him into slavery in Egypt.  Then his master’s wife lied and he went to prison.  Then he got out and became Pharaoh’s right hand man.  But take a look at Joseph’s character for a moment.  I want you to see something about how he did things:

Genesis 39:4-6 (NKJV)
^39:4 So Joseph found favor in his sight, and served him. Then he made him overseer of his house, and all that he had he put under his authority. ⁵ So it was, from the time that he had made him overseer of his house and all that he had, that the Lord blessed the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake; and the blessing of the Lord was on all that he had in the house and in the field. ⁶ Thus he left all that he had in Joseph's hand, and he did not know what he had except for the bread which he ate. Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance.

So Potiphar put everything he had into Joseph’s control. He didn’t even know what he had except what was set on the table before him.   Can you imagine?  Everyday he sat down and said “Oh look bread!  I guess we’re not broke yet.”  That’s big-time trust isn’t it? 

Joseph didn’t let him down either.  The Bible says the Egyptian was blessed for Joseph’s sake.  Because God wanted to bless Joseph, Potiphar got blessed, because Joseph did what he did with excellence.  Is your boss blessed because you work there?  Joseph was excellent in prison and the jailer trusted him over all the other prisoners.  He was excellent in his work for Pharaoh.  His diligence saved Egypt and Israel from the famine.

The other one I want to look at is Daniel:

Daniel 6:1-4 (NKJV)
^6:1 It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom one hundred and twenty satraps, to be over the whole kingdom; ² and over these, three governors, of whom Daniel was one, that the satraps might give account to them, so that the king would suffer no loss. ³ Then this Daniel distinguished himself above the governors and satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king gave thought to setting him over the whole realm. ⁴ So the governors and satraps sought to find some charge against Daniel concerning the kingdom; but they could find no charge or fault, because he was faithful; nor was there any error or fault found in him.

Daniel has an excellent spirit; he was given to excellence in all that he does.  There was no error found in him:  None, zip zero nada, 零.  He has an excellent spirit so the king trusted him above all the others.  As Christians people should be able to see that in us.  You know, we can’t do everything perfectly, we’re human, but perfection isn’t excellence, anyway. Excellence is found in faithfulness, giving your best effort and attention to detail.  It’s from doing it the very best you know how and learning from the mistakes you made and doing it better the next time. 

As an executive I never got angry just when there was a failure on somebody’s part.  If they did what they did with their best effort I would just point out the error and we’d go on.  But if they were careless or kept making the same mistake and never learning from it then there’d be fireworks.  Excellence is found in giving your best.

Being Excellent

How are we excellent?  It’s found in verses 23 and 24 of our text:

Colossians 3:23-24 (NKJV)
^3:23 And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, ²⁴ knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.

So what is it constitutes excellence?  Doing everything as if we’re doing it for Jesus, know that in Him we have our reward.  Isn’t it interesting that God cares about how we do things?  Do you know why God is interested in how we do our tasks; how well we work for our bosses; how well we do what the things we do for Him?  He cares because it reflects on the Gospel. 

People should see Christ in us.  That means being excellent.  People should see the power of God to change lives in us.  That means overcoming our weakness and sin.  People should see the excellence of God in us, because we are living as much like Him as we can.  Because we’re His followers we should be like Him and that means being excellent in our approach to everything.  Can you imagine what a powerhouse our churches could be in our communities if everyone in the church approached the call of God with excellence?   We could turn the world upside down.

Knitting in Church

I have recently had surgery on my arm and the wound is at that stage where it's beginning to itch.  It’s very itchy.  That’s because the skin is knitting together.  When the surgeon cut my skin he separated it into two pieces.  It’s becoming one piece again.  It’s knitting together. 

In a church we take a number of individuals; separate pieces and we try to knit them together.  Try to put them together into one church.  When something is knitted together both parts become one, they move together they work together they go in the same direction seeking the same goals. 

What should be happening in any church is that everyone is becoming of one accord:  That everyone is moving together, striving together for the same thing.  It’s easy to look at the church and say that putting together outreaches and events, that witnessing and bringing in people is the job of the pastor, but if your heart and your pastor’s heart are knit together then you will be doing the same things the pastor is to reach people. 

This is my third post in a row on fellowship.  I’ve been preaching on it a lot, recently, in order to build the camaraderie among the people in my church.  I think it is important that we recognize our need to be together and to strive together.  W need to remember that we were brought together for a reason:  So that   we could bring our strengths and them to the strengths of others, overcoming each other’s weaknesses to win our city for Jesus. 

In this post I want to bring home the need to knit our hearts together.  I’ve said it before; Christianity isn’t a solo pursuit.  There is a call on each of us to reach people with the Gospel.  The call is on all of us, not just the pastor.  Jesus didn’t just send the apostles out to preach, He sent the seventy also.  That’s the pattern of the church of Jesus Christ. 

It isn’t a shepherd who makes sheep.  The sheep make more sheep.  Each of us has influence with people with whom your pastor could never have influence.  Each of you meet and rub shoulder with people whom he will never meet.  Look around your church, whom have you invited and brought in and led to Jesus?  I’m not talking about people from other churches; I’m talking about sinners. 

This is my first post for the New Year.  I preached this New Years Day, the day when people make resolutions for change in the following year.  I think this is a good time to evaluate our commitment to the will of God and make any resolutions necessary for the New Year.  So from this portion of scripture: 

1 Samuel 18:1-4 (NKJV)
^18:1 Now when he had finished speaking to Saul, the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul. ² Saul took him that day, and would not let him go home to his father's house anymore. ³ Then Jonathan and David made a covenant, because he loved him as his own soul. ⁴ And Jonathan took off the robe that was on him and gave it to David, with his armor, even to his sword and his bow and his belt.

The Relationship

This scripture is talking about the knitting together of Jonathan and David’s hearts.  We can see from reading this that there is a deep relationship that has been started between the two men. 

In many ways we can see that the men are very much alike.  We know about Jonathan’s charge on the Philistine Garrison with his armor-bearer in 1 Samuel 14, and we know about David’s assault on Goliath in 1 Samuel 17.  They are the same kind of men.  They’re both courageous.  They’re both full of faith.  They’re both men of action; they took the action of their faith.  They trust God with their lives and expected God to bring about a supernatural victory.  They are kindred spirits.  That word kindred means that they are of a like nature:  They have the same spirit.

It’s interesting that they come from completely different backgrounds.  Jonathan is the eldest son of the king.  He is the next in line for the throne.  He has been raised with the best of everything.  He has given the best education in the kingdom to prepare him to rule the kingdom.

David on the other hand, is the youngest of the seven sons of a shepherd.  He works in the field as a shepherd, his education can’t compare with Jonathan’s.  They’re two different people that come from two different backgrounds and yet at this moment they’ve knit their hearts together.  What would cause that?

Why would them come so close together in this moment?  What is it that they have in common?  What is it that draws them together?  I believe it’s their faith in God.  What they share most is that they’re in the will of God. 

In our church we have a number of people from completely different cultures, educational backgrounds and interests, but one thing links us all together…Jesus.  The one overriding thing in our lives is Jesus. 

David and Jonathan’s desire to be in the will of God for their lives is the thing that knits their hearts together.  These two completely different individuals came together because of their desire to do the will of God.  It occurs to me thatwe can sall come together for the same reason. 

When we decided to come here we had the support of everyone in our home church.  Everyone supported the Taoyuan City church financially.  Everyone prayed for the Taoyuan City church..  Everyone was excited that THEY would be reaching another country through us.  The funny thing is that we are all very different.  Many of the people in that church came from Mexican gangs.  Many were drug addicts.  Many were alcoholics.  Some were high school dropouts.  Some are highly educated.  Many of them didn’t even know where Taiwan was.  Some people still ask me, “How’s the Thai food?’  But I don’t now, I live in Taiwan not Thailand. Most Americans are kind of geographically challenged.

The point is that they rallied behind our pastor’s decision t send us here.  They pray and support us even though we come from such different backgrounds.  Our hearts are knit together for the people of Taiwan.  We are of one accord.

There’s an interesting dynamic that took place in the early church that we can see in the Book of Acts:

Acts 2:1-4 (NKJV)
^2:1 When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. ² And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. ³ Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. ⁴ And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

They were all of one accord in one place; that’s when the Holy Spirit fell.  That’s when God came upon them and began to indwell in them.  When they were of one accord in one place. 

Acts 2:46-47 (NKJV)
^2:46 So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, ⁴⁷ praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.

They were continuing daily with one accord in the temple.  When they were in one accord that’s when God added to the church.  When we’re not scattered and doing different things; when we’re together and on the same page, or knit together, that’s when God can bring increase into the church. 

Finally, look at this:

Matthew 12:25 (NKJV)
^12:25 But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them: "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.

If we are divided and scattered we are destined to desolation.  Do you know what desolation is?  It’s barrenness or a lack of fruitfulness.

Jonathan Gives Up the Kingdom

There is an interesting exchange that takes place in our text.  It’s found in verse number 4:

 1 Samuel 18:4 (NKJV) ^18:4 And Jonathan took off the robe that was on him and gave it to David, with his armor, even to his sword and his bow and his belt.

Jonathan takes of his robe and sword and belt and gives them to David.  The robe signifies Jonathan’s royalty.    It’s the thing that marks him as the king’s son and heir to the throne. It is the symbol of his inheritance of the throne.  By giving them to David he is transferring his royalty onto David.  In other words he’s saying, “You are now a part of royalty; you are now the successor to the king.”  We know that in1 Samuel 16, Samuel has already anointed David the King over Israel.  Jonathan is making a stand for the will of God.

Look at what happens later in their relationship.  Saul has decided to kill David.  In Chapter 18 he tries to pin David to the wall with a javelin.  In Chapter 19 he sends soldiers to David’s house to kill him in his sleep.  His wife, Michal, lowers him down the wall so he can escape.  He escapes to a city called Naioth.  Saul finds out and chases him to Naioth; David comes to Jonathan.

Finally, in Chapter 20, there is a big feast coming up.  Jonathan hatched a plan.  He told David to hide and when Saul asked Jonathan why David wasn’t in his place at the feast Jonathan would tell him that Jonathan had given David permission to go and worship.  Saul’s reaction would tell Jonathan if Saul was serious about killing David. 

So David and Jonathan followed the plan.  David missed the feast and when Saul asked Jonathan about David, Jonathan told him he had given David permission to miss the feast.  Look at Saul’s reaction:

1 Samuel 20:30-34 (NKJV)
^20:30 Then Saul's anger was aroused against Jonathan, and he said to him, "You son of a perverse, rebellious woman! Do I not know that you have chosen the son of Jesse to your own shame and to the shame of your mother's nakedness? ³¹ For as long as the son of Jesse lives on the earth, you shall not be established, nor your kingdom. Now therefore, send and bring him to me, for he shall surely die." ³² And Jonathan answered Saul his father, and said to him, "Why should he be killed? What has he done?" ³³ Then Saul cast a spear at him to kill him, by which Jonathan knew that it was determined by his father to kill David. ³⁴ So Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger, and ate no food the second day of the month, for he was grieved for David, because his father had treated him shamefully.

It was obvious to Jonathan what Saul intended to do to David, so he warned David to flee.

So because his heart was knit with David’s Jonathan warned David to flee from Saul.  Jonathan has begun to protect David.  He knows by what Saul said that David will be the next king of Israel, not Jonathan.  He knows that saul as the authority wants David dead.  He’s going against his father’s wished because the will of God and his relationship with David are the most important to him. 

Sometimes, and this is especially true in Taiwan, the desires of our family members come into conflict with the will of God.  This can make serving God and being in the will of God difficult.  Something bad happens to the family and they look at you and say the reason this happened is because you have brought a curse on the family because you left the traditional Taiwanese religion.  There is anger and hostility.  This is exactly what happened to Jonathan, he came to a point where he had to decide between God’s will and his father’s.  Jonathan makes a stand against his father’s wishes because those wishes lie outside the will of God.

Look what the Bible says:

Luke 14:26 (NKJV)
^14:26 "If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple.

That word translated as hate doesn’t mean what we take it to mean today.  We use the word hate as a strong dislike for another.  The word literally means to love less.  So what Jesus is saying in this statement is that He comes first.  If we place Him first in our lives, then His will must also come before any others, including our own.

That’s why I can’t understand why so many things come before going to church and the other things Jesus has commanded us to do.  If you’re not doing his will, you’re not putting him first.  You may believe in him, but you’re not a disciple.  Jonathan put the will of God before everything else in protecting David.  God’s will came before his father’s will; it even came before being king.

What it Takes to Knit Our Souls Together

Today we need to take a look at where we are as individuals.  What are you doing to further God’s will?  Are you laboring to bring the Gospel to others in your community?  Do you have the same desire to build the church as your pastor?  Where is your personal vision with regard to the vision of the church?  Is your heart linked with your pastor’s?  Are you moving in the direction your church is going or are you doing your own thing?  Are you looking for what you can do within the pattern of your church or do you have a better idea?  Are you involved or are you thinking your role is to sit and watch?  Pretty tough questions, huh?  Your answers will tell you whether or not you are in aone accord with your pastor and your church.

There came a point in my Christian walk where I had to say, I’m going to surrender my will and my vision to the vision of my pastor.  If we’re all going in different directions we can’t move forward.  If we stay together we can accomplish what God is looking to accomplish in our city.

Let me give an example.  Say I’m walking down a path and across the path is a big Gate.  It’s welded shut.  It requires a key to open it.  Behind the gate are a lot of people.  The people are starving, some are hurt, some are suffering with sickness.  They need to be set free so they can be healed and helped.  I come to the gate and I try to push it open and nothing happens.  I fight and struggle and I manage to squeeze some between the bars a few are saved and the rest die. 

Or say there are a number of us there at the gate.  And we see the suffering people and we decide we need to help them.  So one person starts trying to dig a hole under the gate.  Another starts to chop down a tree to make a ladder.  A third starts to file at the weld on the gate.  We’re all doing different things but time is running out and before we can rescue everybody…most of them die.

But what if we come to that gate and all begin to work together.  One team begins to cut the lock and the others push on the door.  By working together we break the gate open and everyone escapes.  Which is the better way?

Faith, Fellowship and Fortitude

We face a number of battles in life.  Things are not always easy.  We’ve heard preaching on adversity in the Christian’s life.  We’ve heard preaching on struggle and disappointment.  We know that Christianity doesn’t guarantee an end to all our troubles. 

We like to think we’re self-sufficient, don’t we?  But the fact is, we can’t do everything alone, sometimes we need God.  In fact there are three things that are crucial to living out the will of God; faith, fellowship and fortitude.  Those three things will see you through the battles of life and into the kingdom of God. 

Today I want to write about faith, fellowship and fortitude from a familiar portion of scripture. 1 Samuel 14:1-6

This story takes place during a battle between Israel and the Philistines.  This is when Saul with 600 men is facing a garrison (or fort) of Philistines.  He’s hopelessly outnumbered.  There is no way he can defeat them with 600 men.

It takes place just after Saul has usurped the role of the priest and offered a burnt offering, thinking that Samuel was going to be late.  Samuel showed up on-time and told him that God had torn the kingdom from him, looking for a man after God’s own heart.

Saul is sitting under the Pomegranate tree, he’s waiting for something to happen.  He’s waiting on God.

But Jonathan is eager to see God’s deliverance so he gather’s his armor-bearer and they attack the Philistines, just the two of them and they kill twenty Philistines on a half-acre of land and then there’s an earthquake and the Bible says the Philistines just melted away.

Faith

Let’s take a look at the things that are happening in this story:

1 Samuel 14:1-3 (NKJV)
^14:1 Now it happened one day that Jonathan the son of Saul said to the young man who bore his armor, "Come, let us go over to the Philistines' garrison that is on the other side." But he did not tell his father. ² And Saul was sitting in the outskirts of Gibeah under a pomegranate tree which is in Migron. The people who were with him were about six hundred men. ³ Ahijah the son of Ahitub, Ichabod's brother, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the Lord's priest in Shiloh, was wearing an ephod. But the people did not know that Jonathan had gone.

In these three verses we see a contrast in faith.  On the one hand we see Jonathan who tells his armor-bearer, “Let’s go attack the Philistines.” “Let’s take an action and see if God will move.”  We see this faith more completely in verse 6.

1 Samuel 14:6 (NKJV)
^14:6 Then Jonathan said to the young man who bore his armor, "Come, let us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised; it may be that the Lord will work for us. For nothing restrains the Lord from saving by many or by few."

What restrains God?  He can save through many or He can save through a few.

Faith is an action word.  It doesn’t mean to sit and believe that God will magically do something.  Through faith, we take an action.  We call it a step of faith, don’t we?  So Jonathan decides to actively move on his faith that God will deliver by Jonathan’s actions.

On the other hand we see Saul, who is sitting under the pomegranate tree.  He’s got the priest in an ephod.  The priest wore the ephod to consult the oracle of God.  Saul’s looking to hear from God.  Saul is waiting for God to move.  But in waiting, what’s he doing?  He’s doing nothing.    The circumstances aren’t going to change by waiting.  Saul isn’t doing anything to activate a move of God.  He’s not acting in faith, he’s waiting for magic. 

Let’s think about that for a moment.  Is that faith?  “Okay, I prayed, now I’m going to sit down here and wait for God to wave his magic wand and change my circumstances.”  The question here is, “Does waiting around change our circumstances.  In your own life, when was the last time that doing nothing improved a bad situation. 

There are no more soldiers marching to Saul’s position.  The Philistines aren’t going anywhere; they smell an easy victory.  Nothing is going to change through Saul’s waiting.

Look at the Bibical definition of faith: 

Hebrews 11:1 (NKJV)
^11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Faith gives substance to what we hope for.  It’s the evidence of what we don’t see.  In other words faith makes our hopes and dreams real.  How do you make it real?  By acting in Faith. 

Saul is sitting, waiting for God to move and nothing is happening.  How many of us have real needs that only God can meet?  What are we doing to see those needs met?  Jonathan steps out and acts in faith.  God moves powerfully in response to his faith.  The deliverance of Israel comes from that act of faith.  Saul waits for God; Jonathan acts, knowing God will respond.  Which one is acting in faith?  So, simply said, faith is the catalyst to a move of God.  It is vital for a Christian to not only believe but to act in faith to see God move.

But I’m not talking about acting rashly.  I’m talking about prayerful, considered acts of faith.  Jonathan isn’t rash in his decision to go to the Philistines.  First, he enlists the armor-bearer; he asks the question, “Should we do this?”  Secondly, he looks for God to be involved; “This will be the sign,” he’s asking God which way should we do this.  “What’s your plan for the completion of this thing?”  Thirdly, he acts and God’s answer comes out of that action.  Once they showed themselves the Philistines responded according to the sign they were looking for from God.  This is a pattern for us in decision-making.  As Christians we need to act in faith.

Fellowship

1 Samuel 14:6-12 (NKJV)
^14:6 Then Jonathan said to the young man who bore his armor, "Come, let us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised; it may be that the Lord will work for us. For nothing restrains the Lord from saving by many or by few." ⁷ So his armorbearer said to him, "Do all that is in your heart. Go then; here I am with you, according to your heart." ⁸ Then Jonathan said, "Very well, let us cross over to these men, and we will show ourselves to them. ⁹ If they say thus to us, 'Wait until we come to you,' then we will stand still in our place and not go up to them. ¹⁰ But if they say thus, 'Come up to us,' then we will go up. For the Lord has delivered them into our hand, and this will be a sign to us." ¹¹ So both of them showed themselves to the garrison of the Philistines. And the Philistines said, "Look, the Hebrews are coming out of the holes where they have hidden." ¹² Then the men of the garrison called to Jonathan and his armorbearer, and said, "Come up to us, and we will show you something." Jonathan said to his armorbearer, "Come up after me, for the Lord has delivered them into the hand of Israel."

Jonathan wanted to see a move of God.  He was looking for the deliverance of Israel.  At this time in Israel’s history, The Philistines were dominating them.  Israel didn’t have any blacksmiths, they were forced to go down to the Philistines to have farming tools sharpened…so they had no weapons to defend themselves.  Look at this:

1 Samuel 13:22-23 (NKJV)
^13:22 So it came about, on the day of battle, that there was neither sword nor spear found in the hand of any of the people who were with Saul and Jonathan. But they were found with Saul and Jonathan his son. ²³ And the garrison of the Philistines went out to the pass of Michmash.

You can see what a desperate time this was for them.  They’re facing a force that greatly outnumbers them.  They have no weapons.  The Philistines will totally dominate any kind of battle, then they’ll “own” Israel.  This is a desperate moment.

Jonathan isn’t looking out for his own self-interest here he’s looking for the deliverance of all of Israel.  He knows that deliverance is only possible through supernatural means.  Only God can do this, for Israel it’s impossible.  They only have about six hundred men; only Jonathan and Saul have weapons.  Jonathan is ready to act but he knows he can’t act on his own so he enlists the armor-bearer. 

Jonathan and Saul are under huge pressure, here.  But look at how each reacts:

Saul waits to see what God will do; he doesn’t look to any of the others.  He’s trying to deal with all on his own.  Remember in Chapter 13 he offered the burnt offering instead of waiting for Samuel to come.  He moved to solve a problem on his own and in his own strength.  They’d been sitting there for a while…The people were frightened, they were hiding, they were leaving.  Saul didn’t want to wait for Samuel because he was afraid he wouldn’t be able to hold his force together so he orders the animal to be brought for the burnt offering.

1 Samuel 13:9-12 (NKJV)
^13:9 So Saul said, "Bring a burnt offering and peace offerings here to me." And he offered the burnt offering. ¹⁰ Now it happened, as soon as he had finished presenting the burnt offering, that Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet him, that he might greet him. ¹¹ And Samuel said, "What have you done?" And Saul said, "When I saw that the people were scattered from me, and that you did not come within the days appointed, and that the Philistines gathered together at Michmash, ¹² then I said, 'The Philistines will now come down on me at Gilgal, and I have not made supplication to the Lord.' Therefore I felt compelled, and offered a burnt offering."

So he acted alone and look at the outcome:

1 Samuel 13:13-14 (NKJV)
^13:13 And Samuel said to Saul, "You have done foolishly. You have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which He commanded you. For now the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. ¹⁴ But now your kingdom shall not continue. The Lord has sought for Himself a man after His own heart, and the Lord has commanded him to be commander over His people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you."

The Lord would have established his kingdom forever, but because he acted alone he lost it all.  In Chapter 16 Samuel anoints David to be king of Israel, while Saul and his heir are still alive. 

But now look at how Jonathan reacted.  He went to the armor-bearer; he wasn’t intending to act on his own.  He went to a brother; someone with whom he is of one accord.  He acted in fellowship with another man whose strength was as strong as his own.  In Christian terms, they acted in fellowship. 

We aren’t alone.  Christianity was never intended to be a solo pursuit.  We are intended to be together and strive together.  Last week in, “Are You Spiritually Fat?” I wrote about striving together.  That’s God’s will that we will be in fellowship with each other.  That’s why in Hebrews Chapter 10 it says this:

Hebrews 10:24-25 (NKJV)
^10:24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, ²⁵ not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.

That verse is talking about fellowship; we need each other. 

We can see that Jonathan and his armor-bearer were of the same mind.  The armor-bearer tells Jonathan, “Do all that is in your heart. Go then; here I am with you, according to your heart.”  He’s merely saying, I’m with you.  I believe with you.  I’m of one accord with you. 

Before I came to Taiwan, I pastored a church in Riverside, California. There was a family member of one of the Riverside church members that became very sick.  He had made tea of a plant that was a dangerous and powerful drug and he ended up in the hospital.  This woman in our church is there to pray for him, she’s witnessing to him and his wife.  Afterward the wife turns to her thanking her and says this: “My heart is with you.”  Do you know what that is?  It’s fellowship.

This is what the armor-bearer said to Jonathan.  “Do it, my heart’s with you.”  Look at what was accomplished:” 1) they defeated the garrison of the Philistines and 2) God moved powerfully and brought about the deliverance of Israel.  In acting together we can overcome, in acting alone we’re doomed. 

Fortitude

According to Mirriam-Webster Dictionaries, Fortitude can be defined as strength of mind that enables one to meet danger or bear pain or adversity with courage

Jonathan’s faith carried with it fortitude.  It took courage in this instance to act in faith.  Two men facing a whole garrison, that’s courageous.  That’s fortitude.  The odds were against them and they acted courageously, anyway. 

How often do we face things in life that require courage?  We make decisions that will affect our families.  We make decisions in business that are a risk .  We make decisions that will completely change or lives, forever.  That takes fortitude…and faith. 

That’s what happened in 1 Samuel 14.  Jonathan acted in faith, fellowship and fortitude and God gave Israel a great victory.  I want you to notice that Jonathan wasn’t acting selfishly here.  He was acting for all of Israel.  But I also want you to know that God will meet your individual needs as well, when those needs further God’s will for your life. 

Faith, fellowship and fortitude:  These three things are vital to the Christian experience.  God is expecting that we will be of one accord and strive together for victory.  We need each other. 

One of the problems I’ve seen over and over is people making decisions on their own, without God, and without counsel.    There was a couple in Riverside that decided that they would move to Mexico to pursue a career.  The man told me, “There’s more opportunity in Mexico.”  Seven percent of the population of Mexico has immigrated to the US, legally and illegally looking for the opportunity to feed their families. 

But this couple, like Saul made the decision to go on their own, without God and actually ignoring counsel.  God even spoke to them through a sermon, I preached the day before they left and I didn’t even know they had made this decision at the time.  They lost everything, eventually came back and now they’re gloriously saved, living for Jesus and blessed.

But look at the lesson; they acted more like Saul than Jonathan.  God puts churches together because we all have gifts that benefit each other.  It’s like marriage; Brenda has strengths, talents and abilities I don’t have.  I have strengths, talents and abilities she doesn’t have, but together we make a good team.  The same is true in the church.  We can benefit from our association together.  Striving and fighting together makes us much stronger than fighting alone.  If we act together in faith, fellowship and fortitude, God will bring about a victory in our church…and in our individual lives.