SPIRITUAL NECESSITIES FOR A LIFE OF FAITH

TEXT:                                     GENESIS 26:24-25

INTRODUCTION:

Isaac was the son of a famous father (Abraham), and the father of a famous son (Jacob, who became Israel). THIRTEEN chapters in Genesis are devoted to telling the story of Abraham, and around TEN chapters to the story of Jacob. They are major characters in the plot. But Isaac’s story is told in just TWO — chapter 24 (the account of Abraham finding him a wife, Rebekah), and this 26th chapter.

Nevertheless, Isaac’s life was by no means insignificant. He was the child that Abraham waited 100 years for — the child of promise. He was a miracle baby; conceived after Sarah had given up on all possibility of it still happening. Isaac was the one who carried on the line in the purposes of God. And on his deathbed, it was Isaac who lay his hands upon Jacob, unwittingly though it was, and set apart the future of Israel.

Even down to the present day, the Jews speak of “the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” He is listed among the champions of faith in Hebrews 11, where is says: “By faith (he) blessed Jacob and Esau in regard to their future.”

Isaac was the child of promise that Abraham had endured in faith for, but being the son of Abraham was NOT the key to his spiritual success. He carried on the line of God’s plan, and was used by God to set apart the next generation, but being the father of Jacob was NOT the key to his spiritual success. Isaac himself lived a life of faith, and carved out for himself the place God had predestined for him in history.

We find three things in the life of Isaac which are symbolic of spiritual necessities for anyone who desires to live a life of faith. If you examine the life of any man or woman who is experiencing real spiritual victory, you will discover these three characteristics.

Our text is Genesis 26:25, which we read a few minutes ago … “So (Isaac) built AN ALTAR there, and called upon the name of the Lord, and he pitched HIS TENT there: and there Isaac’s servants dug A WELL.”

The first thing we see in this verse is that:

1.    ISAAC BUILT AN ALTAR

“So he built an altar there and called on the name of the Lord.”

It was a time of great difficulty for Isaac. God had greatly blessed him in the land of the Philistines where he was living, so that the Bible says (verse 13): “(Isaac) began to prosper, and continued prospering until he became very prosperous; for he had possessions of flocks and possessions of herds and a great number of servants. So the Philistines envied him.”

The envious Philistines filled in all his wells, and their king, Abimelech, said to Isaac: “Go away from us, for you are much mightier than we.” So he began moving from place to place, encountering opposition and conflict, until finally he came to Beersheba.

I don’t know just how low and anxious Isaac was feeling at this point, but the night he arrived in Beersheba, God appeared to him, and God spoke to him wonderful words of assurance and promise. He reiterated to Isaac the covenant He had made with his father, Abraham: “I am the God of your father Abraham; do not fear, for I am with you. I will bless you and multiply your descendants for my servant Abraham’s sake.”  Isaac knew all about altars, didn’t he?  You recall the gripping account of when Isaac was just a boy, how in obedience to God, Abraham took him up Mount Moriah and laid him on an altar. On that occasion, the Lord was testing the DEDICATION of Abraham — would he be obedient? Even to the point of sacrificing his own son? And the answer the Lord received was a resounding YES. Abraham’s heart was DEDICATED to God. And at the last possible moment God stayed the knife. “Stop Abraham! … for now I know that you fear (me) since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.”

What was Isaac’s response to the revelation of God? “So he built an altar there and called on the name of the Lord.”

An ALTAR speaks of DEDICATION.

With a word coming from the Lord like that, you and I will be encouraged to ask and ask and ask something from Him…but we can see in the life of Isaac, that instead of asking something he dedicated his life unto the Lord.  (ALAM NYA NA HIGIT PA SA ANUMANG BAGAY O PABOR ANG PWEDE NIYANG MAKAMIT KUNG ANG KANYANG BUHAY AY NAGAWA NYANG IAALAAY SA KANYANG PANGINOON.)

The apostle Paul implores us in ROMANS 12:1, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service”.

Illustration:

I read about a man by the name of Taylor Smith — a man greatly used by God – and he had a practice every morning, before he would get out of bed, he would pray this prayer: “Lord Jesus, this bed is the altar; my body is the sacrifice; I offer it afresh to you in total dedication.”

What about you, this evening? Have you built an altar? Have you offered yourself as a sacrifice to God? Have you re-affirmed that dedication to the Lord recently? Dedication needs to be done often in our lives. The call of ROMANS 12:1 is for us to have lives characterized as “LIVING sacrifices” to Him.

Maybe you need to do what Elijah had to do in 1 Kings 18. When the nation of Israel was living in idolatry — worshipping the baals and the Ashorah poles — Elijah challenged the false prophets to a contest on Mount Carmel to see which God was real. He called down fire from heaven and demonstrated the power of the only true and living God. BUT WHAT DID HE DO BEFORE HE PRAYED FOR THE FIRE TO FALL? It says that HE REBUILT THE ALTAR OF THE LORD. The neglected altar. The broken-down altar. Elijah took Israel back to the place where their dedication had been left behind.

Back to the altar. And he rebuilt it for the fire to fall.

Maybe you need to repair the broken altar in YOUR life. Consecrate your heart to the Lord afresh today. (BAGO TAYO LUMAPIT AT HUMINGI NG TUGON, TUMPAK O TAMA LAMANG NA ATING AYUSIN ANG ATING MGA PUSO, ANG ATING MGA ALTAR SA PANGINOON.) An altar speaks of DEDICATION. Isaac built an altar.

2.    ISAAC PITCHED A TENT

“… and he pitched his tent there.”

Isaac had heard the voice of the Lord in Beersheba – he’d met with God, and so he pitched his tent there. The people of God should always want to stay close to the presence and the direction of God! If God is speaking, this is where I want to be! But, would you notice, Isaac pitched a tent, he didn’t build a house.

The reason Isaac was in Beersheba was because this was where God was speaking. God had brought him here, but if God’s presence should move and lead him elsewhere, Isaac was ready to go. Here’s another sign of his dedication. His “house” was not some geographical location where all his possessions were established — his home was wherever God and His will were to be found.

A TENT speaks of DETACHMENT.

As Christians, we are pilgrims PASSING THROUGH this world. In order to PASS THROUGH, we must remain DETACHED from this world and all that it holds dear. OUR HEARTS BELONG TO ANOTHER KINGDOM.

Jim Elliot said: “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep, in order to gain what he cannot lose.”  No matter how hard you try, you cannot ultimately retain the things of this life. They’re passing away — moths are eating them, time and rust are corroding them. There’s no future in earthly stuff. Jesus said: “Seek FIRST the Kingdom of God …”

We must be detached from this world’s pleasure. We must be detached from this world’s praise. It’s a bad sign when this world praises us – and it’s even worse if we start desiring this world’s praise!  1 JOHN 2:15: “Do not love the world, or the things in the world” (Verse 17) … “The world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever”.

An altar speaks of DEDICATION; a tent speaks of DETACHMENT…

3.    ISAAC DUG A WELL

“… and there Isaac’s servants dug a well.”

A WELL speaks of DEPENDENCE.

For Isaac it was a matter of life and death. It was a matter of DIGGING or DYING! He had to have water. And in that middle-eastern land, he had to have lots of it. Isaac dug wells wherever he went.

The same is true concerning God’s Word in our lives. Without it we will DIE spiritually! Jesus said in Matthew 4:4, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.”

The Bible describes a person who reads and meditates upon the Word of God as: “… a tree planted by the rivers of water, that brings forth it’s fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper”. (PSALM 1:3)

For the child of God — for my life, for YOUR life — it’s DIG or DIE! We can’t live without the Word of God. We are dependent on God’s Word.

CONCLUSION:

Isaac built an altar. Isaac pitched a tent. Isaac dug a well.

Are these characteristics present in your life today?

• Have you built an altar? Are you maintaining that altar — daily renewing your DEDICATION to the Lord. Consecrating your heart to Him alone.
• Have you pitched a tent? In your heart of hearts are you DETACHED from the things of this world?
• Have you dug a well? Are DEPENDENT upon the Word of God as your source? Are you continuing to dig for the water of life?

Amen.

A NEW YEAR OF NEW BEGINNINGS

TEXT:                                     Romans 13:11-14

INTRODUCTION:

What is the one thing most people have in common at the New Year? Most of us make resolutions, don’t we?

Illustration:

One young boy asked his father what his new years’ resolution was, and his father said he was going to do everything possible in the New Year to make his mother very happy.

The boy asked his mother what hers was, and she said, “To do everything possible to make sure your father keeps his resolution.”

Transition:

Why do we make those things anyway? We make them because there are areas in our lives we are either unhappy with, or areas in our lives we want to be better.

New Year is one of those very few times when everybody, believers and non-believers alike, are going to be doing the exact same thing at the exact same time: Leaving one place and going into another. I am talking about leaving 2011 and entering 2012.

As we prepare to celebrate another new year, I want to talk a little about how we should leave 2011 and how we should enter 2012.  So, what are you planning on leaving behind as you enter the new year? When we leave 2011, I think we should.

1.    LEAVE IT COMPLETELY

When we pray, we often take our needs to the Lord and ask His help in dealing with them. And then what do we do? Instead of leaving them with Him, we take them back with us as we finish praying.

WE NEED TO LEARN TO LEAVE THINGS WHERE THEY BELONG. What are some of the things we need to leave behind? I think it can be summed up by just saying that ANYTHING IN OUR LIVES THAT KEEP US FROM FULLY FOCUSING ON THE LORD SHOULD BE LEFT BEHIND. BEING A CHRISTIAN MEANS TO ALWAYS BE GOING FORWARD. Have you ever noticed how we always talk about our walk? We talk about our walk in life; our walk of faith; and walk with the Lord. By its very nature, walking means moving forward. And as we move forward, we are always doing two things: We leave one place and go into another.  As we leave, let us leave behind those parts of ourselves that do us no good. Here are some suggestions as to what you might choose to leave behind.

a.    Leave your RESENTMENTS behind.

Each of us resent something. We might resent something we have said and done, or we might resent what someone else has said and done. But along with resentment comes UNFORGIVENESS. AND UNFORGIVENESS IS A VERY DANGEROUS THING TO KEEP IN OUR LIVES.

Jesus said that if we forgive, God will forgive us. But if we do not forgive, God will not forgive us. Now, we must understand that to forgive does not mean the same thing as to forget. WE CANNOT ERASE OUR MEMORIES, BUT WE CAN ERASE OUR RESENTMENT. I would suggest that we just look at things from a different perspective. Instead of looking at your resentment from the negative side, start looking at it from the positive side. In other words, when you remember those things, as you surely will, look at them as an example of what not to ever feel again. Understanding where they will lead you should be enough encouragement to do so.  So forget those things which hurt you. And forgive those people who did or said them. I like the old saying: “Look lovingly upon your enemies, for it is you who have made them.” We choose to dislike people, based upon what we like or think. We must realize that we are not the perfect examples, so we shouldn’t hold others accountable to our standards.  Also, if you stoop low enough to begrudge others – THEY WIN! So make a decision to leave your resentment behind.

b.    Leave your WORRIES behind.

Worries are very much like rocking chairs. They give you something to do, but they never take you anywhere while you’re doing it. We only worry about two things: Things we can change and things we cannot change. Why waste time doing something that not only hurts us and never helps us?

When we worry, it ends up taking over our ever thought and it becomes the predominate thought of our lives. Yet, it is also worry that causes mental illness, stress, and many other things that destroy our lives. Worry has killed more people than hard work ever did. Worry is the cause of fear.  So, leave your worries behind as you enter the New Year, too.

c.    Leave your FAILURES behind.

We try so hard to be the best we can be, but we don’t always succeed. And it is in those times when we don’t succeed, that we get discouraged because we have failed. But what have we failed in? We may not have achieved just what we originally set out to achieve, but we haven’t failed.

THE ONLY TIME YOU FAIL IS WHEN YOU DON’T TRY TO DO ANYTHING!  TRYING TIMES ARE NOT THE TIME TO STOP TRYING! We need to understand that God has called us to have faith long before He ever called us to achieve. We are called to be in Christ, and as long as we are in Him, we are successful.

The ancient Israelites never seemed to get it right. They would all turn toward God and worship Him and everything in their lives would drastically improve. But after a couple of hundred years, they would turn their backs on Him again and see doom visit them and their nation. But, we are told that God will turn our failure into success, IF WE ALLOW HIM FULLY INTO OUR LIVES.

1 KINGS 8:33-34  ‘When Your people, Israel, have been defeated by enemies because they sinned against You, and when they turn back to You and confess Your name, then You will hear from Heaven, and You will forgive their sins and bring them back to the land of their forefathers.’

When we as a nation, or as individuals, have strayed from our Lord, we will find failure in our lives. But when we turn back once again to Him, He will hear our pleas and He will restore us to success, for He is a God of restoration.

As we leave 2011, we should pay close attention to the words of the Apostle Paul in 1 CORINTHIANS 13:5-6 – ‘Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you realize that Christ Jesus in you – unless, of course, you fail the test? And I trust that you will discover that we have not failed the test.’

In other words, look deep within your heart. Is Jesus in you, or do you just acknowledge Him as you live the way you desire? If you try to live for Him, the way He wants you to live, then Jesus is in you and you have been a major success!

So, as we head into a new year, make sure Jesus is firmly planted in your heart so He goes with you, covering you in God’s wonderful grace and blessings. And then choose to leave those things that distract you from realizing Jesus to the fullest possible extent.

Illustration:

Imagine a trapeze artist swinging from one swing to another, high above the ground with no net under him. As he reaches out to the next swing, what must he do? He must let go of the one he is on. If he refuses to let go of the swing he is on, will he ever be able to go to the next swing? Absolutely not! And in the same way, we must let go of our old year before we can go purposefully into the New Year.

Let 2011 be fully completed. In a matter of few days, this year is over.  Let it take its rightful place in the hallway of the past. Whether it was good or bad, helpful or not, let it be complete by letting go of it.

And as you let go of the past, we must learn to ….

2.    MAKE THE BEST OF THE FUTURE.

Each New Year is a representative thing. It represents to us that there is a whole range of new opportunities for us; an unlimited chance to have a better life. At the start of every year, we see magazines publishing predictions on how they think the world will be in the upcoming year. Some of these predictions have been accurate, but most have fallen way short of being true.

One such prediction was that in the 21st century, technology would be so advanced that the world would not work more than about 20 hours a week. I think we can all agree that prediction missed the mark by a mile.

It seems that, no matter how far advanced technology gets, we just keep getting busier and busier. Someone said that, “The merry-go-round of life has gotten so fast that we now have no chance of stepping off.” If that is the case, we need to go into our tomorrows with as much help as possible.

How do you think we will fare in the New Year? Will it actually be a year of new beginnings for us? Will we have the wherewithal to analyze ourselves honestly, so that we will know what areas to leave behind and what things to bring with us? We need to be very wise as we step through the doorway of time.

One of the best suggestions along this line is found in – EPHESIANS 5:15-17 “Be very careful, then, how you live – not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.”

If we are going to make the best of the future, we need to understand a few things.

a.    Our Time on Earth is LIMITED.

PSALM 90:10 states, (New International Reader’s Version) “We live to be about 70. Or we may live to be 80, if we stay healthy. But all that time is filled with trouble and sorrow. The years quickly pass, and then – – we are gone.”

Our lives seem so long – to us. But in reality, they are so very short. Considering that, wouldn’t it to us good to make sure that we use 2012 as a time to really get right with the Lord? I am talking about getting totally sold out for Jesus, and stop worrying about what our friends, neighbors, and co-workers might say to us for doing so!

What seems like forever to us is only a blink of an eye. The psalmist writes that our life lasts no longer than the vapor of our breath; it is here and then it is gone.

Illustration:

A magazine ran an article about a new clock they have that keeps track of how much time we have left to live. It calculates an average life span of 75 years for men and 80 years for women. So, for a mere $100 you can program your gender and age into the clock and it will tell you how much time you have left.

That is going to the extreme, but we are told in the Bible to keep track of our days. Now, that doesn’t necessarily mean to know when you are going to die, but to know your time is limited and it is your responsibility to make the most of it for the Lord.

If I live to the ripe old age of 75, I have nearly 16,060 days left. That seems like a lot, but you see it in its real context when you consider I have already lived a little over 11,315 days. So, in the limited time I have left, what I should be looking at more than anything else is – what can I do for the Lord while I am still here?

We have such a short time here in this life, but it is on that short time that all of our eternity will depend. Therefore, I think any sane person would choose to take personal analysis of themselves and figure out what areas of their lives do them more harm than good; make a choice to leave them behind as they step forward into a new year of opportunities the Lord has given us; and to make the best of this future with all the gusto we have, knowing it, too, shall pass and come to a “quicker than we are ready for” end.

We must learn…

b.    You Must Learn to Prioritize Important Matters in Your Life.

It is estimated that the average doctor must read over 200 medical articles each month, just to keep up with all the new changes and procedures? That comes out to an average of nearly 70 articles a month. Of course, there is no doctor who has that kind of time, and because they don’t, many doctors feel absolutely overloaded. They feel this way because they are expected to do something they cannot do.

How many times do we hear that, because somebody was so stressed from overload, they snapped or had a melt down? Have you ever heard of anyone having mental or emotional problems because they had everything under control? NO…They are having problems emotionally and even mentally because they’ve been overloaded and that they can no longer handle the pressures and challenges they’re facing.

WE MUST BE SURE THAT WE HAVE OUR PRIORITIES SET IN ORDER AND THAT WE REALIZE WHICH THINGS MUST BE DONE SO WE DON’T GET OVERLOADED IN 2012.

ECCLESIASTES 3:1-2 reminds us, “There is a time for everything. There’s a time for everything that is done on earth. There is a time to be born, and a time to die.”

Time management is not as difficult as it first appears. List all the things you have to do. Then go back over them, assigning a number to each thing on your list, with #1 being the most important and on down the line from there.

Then make another list, listing each of the prior items in their numerical order, starting with #1. Now you have the most important things in your life already written down before you, and all you have to do is to figure out about when you will do them and how long you will spend doing them. For instance, if prayer is on your list (and I surely hope it is), write down daily, and either a time period, or a total amount of time that you are going to spend in prayer.

We must go into our new year with our eyes wide open so we can grab hold of everything God is giving us. (DAPAT NA BUKAS ANG MGA MATA, ALAM KUNG SAAN GINUGUGOL ANG MGA ORAS AT PANAHON, AT DAPAT TIYAK ANG PRAYORIDAD SA BUHAY PARA MAGING MATAGUMPAY ANG TAONG DARATING). And that means to pay attention to Him, not just giving Him that occasional thought in passing.

But there is a third thing we must do if we are going to use 2012 as a year of new beginnings and become as successful in everything we need to do.

We must …

3.    KNOW THE LORD’S WILL.

Again, quoting the Apostle Paul, he says for us “…to not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.”

I am assuming that since you are in church today, you realize that you need the Lord in your life. And I am hoping that you really believe that your relationship with Jesus is more important than anything else in your life. I am also in prayer that this knowledge you have will mean that you will be in church even if there is a boxing bout at Sundays, or even if you did make a bad choice and stay out really late on Saturday night.

Know that the Lord never says for you to be comfortable. He does, however, expect you to focus on Him and not things of this world. To do this, you must be F.A.T. Let me explain.

a.    You must be FAITHFUL.

How faithful are you to Jesus Christ? Are you faithful just when it is convenient to do so, or are you faithful even when it isn’t? I have talked about giving your offering from a sacrificial standpoint. If I have a lot of money and give it from comfort, it doesn’t mean as much as if somebody else can barely afford to give, but gives as much as they can plus a little extra. Why? Because they had to sacrifice something for the Lord when they gave, and I didn’t.

That is being faithful to Jesus. You focus on Him and do things for His glory, even when it is an inconvenience to you to do so.

b.    You must be AVAILABLE.

How available are you? Do you serve Him out of convenience?  When you’re not busy doing your business or job?  Do you do service/ministry for Him when you’re not tired? Do you reach out to others only if you know them, or even when you don’t know them? In other words, are you really available to do what God wants you to do?

c.    And you must be TEACHABLE.

Are you willing to listen to me or some other person in authority tell you what you should be doing for Jesus, or do you get irritated and quit listening? I can tell you that for most adults, they took offense when a preacher or teacher tried to tell them what they must be doing to give glory to God. But that is Satan using your self-will and pride to keep you away from the Lord. A mentor used to say it like this: “Listen to all advice you can get. Then, analyze it and study it. Discard what will not help you and hang on to dear life to that which will help you.”

To be a Christian who is walking forward for the Lord and not just sitting in one spot, claiming the miracles of Christ, we need to be F.A.T. (Faithful, Available, and Teachable.) Are you?

Life is what happens to you as you are focused on your dreams. Dreams are fine, but don’t let them rob you of your life. And keep your life in Christ, so that you truly can be – all you were meant to be.

CONCLUSION:

If I can close with just one thought, let me read to you what Paul said in – ROMANS 13:11-14 (The Message Version – paraphrased) ‘… make sure that you don’t get so absorbed and exhausted in taking care of all your day-by-day obligations that you lose track of the time and doze off, oblivious to God. The night is about over, and dawn is about to break. Be awake and aware of what God is doing! We can’t afford to waste a minute, must not squander these precious daylight hours in frivolity and indulgence, in sleeping around or in bickering and grabbing everything in sight.  Get out of bed and get dressed! Don’t loiter and linger, waiting until the very last minute. Dress yourselves in Christ, then be about His work while you can!’

You now have a choice. You can go into the New Year, taking everything with you, being dulled to the need of changing some things, or you can go into the New Year trying your best to make sure the past is the past and the future is for God.

But to do so requires some very honest thinking on your part. You can no longer ignore things because you have now been made aware. And when you are aware of what God wants, you become accountable for doing them.

I want to help you go into your year of new beginnings, using it as that – a year of brand new beginnings, of having new opportunities, and a year of new hope. Will you let me do that by coming forward this morning?

God wants to give you a “do-over” for 2012. Will you accept it?

INVITATION: