Gtcotr/ss011809
Only those who love a thing will attempt to change it for the better.
Key Scripture: 2 Chronicles 7:14 "If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”
Today I want to tell two Bible stories, one before I preach and one afterwards providing we have time. The first Bible story is found in the book of Genesis.
Genesis 18 NKJV
20 And the LORD said, "Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grave,
21 "I will go down now and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry against it that has come to Me; and if not, I will know."
23 ¶ And Abraham came near and said, "Would You also destroy the righteous with the wicked?
24 "Suppose there were fifty righteous within the city; would You also destroy the place and not spare it for the fifty righteous that were in it?
25 "Far be it from You to do such a thing as this, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be as the wicked; far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?"
26 So the LORD said, "If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes."
This haggling continues all the way through verse 32. Abraham asked God to spare the cities for the sake of 45, then 40, then 30, then 20 and finally for the sake of 10 righteous people. God agreed that He would not destroy Sodom if 10 righteous people could be found therein. I would say that Abraham was a good salesman.
You see, it only takes a few righteous people, sometimes only one, to turn a city or a nation’s destiny from destruction to reprieve.
Ezekiel 22:30 "So I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one.”
God is still looking for a few righteous people! Are you one? What does it take to qualify as righteous?
I’m no Abraham but I do have a great job, although a very difficult one at times. It is my responsibility to keep the Body of Christ and in particular our local church congregation unified, in agreement and focused on God’s Word, God’s Will and God’s Work in this generation.
Each time I come to the pulpit, answer an email or counsel someone over the phone, I challenge myself to stick to God’s Word and point people to their proper response in the situations and with the challenges they face. It’s not always as easy as one might think because God often just does not feel like some of you feel about your life or problem. He may have a completely different perspective and I am left to sell His way to you in efforts to keep you right with God.
Don’t get me wrong … I would not trade places with anyone in the world or in history for that matter. I love my job and I love my Boss. However, my duties disallow me to hold or promote any personal opinion, including mine, which stands apart from that of my Master.
So, on occasion when some significant event takes place in our world which merits mention, it is my duty to spend time with God in prayer, the Word and counsel, and get heaven’s perspective before I come to the pulpit or make the odd comment which might serve to influence some soul I am charged to watch over.
In the course of my ministry there are two things I have been constantly concerned with. First I want to please God and be right with Him. Next I want to tell you the truth in such a way that you are most likely to understand it, accept it and put it into practice.
My greatest challenge is often finding a way to keep you interested and listening while I share the truth. The truth is always easy, telling the truth in such a way that it is understood and embraced is the hard part. Jesus faced this same challenge and often chose to tell stories or put truth in parables in His attempt to help people see and accept His message of the moment.
However, many times when Jesus was with those close to Him, He simply cut to the chase and laid the truth bare with some straight talk. That’s what we do with family and close friends. So, since we have a relationship, allow me to take that approach this morning.
Today begins a new week and this week is a historic week in our nation and indeed the world. Tomorrow, Monday the 19th of January 2009, (my 36th wedding anniversary), is a national holiday celebrating the birthday and commemorating the life, the struggles and the victories of the Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King Jr. and his leadership in our nation’s civil rights movement.
The following day, Tuesday of this week, January 20th, is Inauguration Day. On Tuesday Barack Hussein Obama, a half Black Kenyan, half White American, 47 year old man, will become the 44th President of the United States of America.
This week history will be made as the world witnesses the swearing in of the first African-American president of this nation. In August of 1961, when President Elect Obama was born, who would have imagined this ever being a real possibility?
Our nation, although losing ground on many moral fronts in recent decades, has nonetheless become a true leader of civil rights for the whole world. America who serves as peacemaker for many nations has not forgotten her own people, their differences and the struggles they face attempting to level the playing fields of life while dealing with the hell and injustice of prejudice. Do not minimize this day or the accomplishments to which it points.
Our nation has come a long way, especially in this generation. Why? First, because prejudice is not in the heart of God and second because it is not in your hearts either. However, prejudice is still something we are for the most part strangely silent about.
We need not be silent any longer. In fact it is imperative that those of us who bear no ill will or limitation for any other person or people group because of their race, color, national origin, gender or religion, speak up and speak up loudly, to our friends, our families and our world. America has truly become a land of opportunity.
Let every man be judged heretofore by his own merits and even then judged only by God. For what reason, to what benefit or advantage do people hold race based prejudices? Only the ignorant, insecure, fearful or unforgiving would judge a book by its cover or a person by the color of their skin, color of their hair, or color of their money.
* Not every middle aged, southern born white man living in America in the 1950’s & 60’s was a member of the KKK
* Not every black man in the 60’s was affiliated with the black panthers
* Not every Hispanic working on a roof in your neighborhood is an illegal alien
* Not every gorgeous blonde beauty is an airhead
* Not every homeless person is a bum
* Not every Palestinian is a member of Hamas
* Not every Muslim is a terrorist
* Not every Asian is a computer programmer or a cook
* Not every postal worker is disgruntled
* Not every used car salesman is a liar
* Not every person in a nail salon speaking a foreign language is talking about you
* Not every person accused of a crime is guilty
* Not every man with a beard and a motorcycle is dangerous
* Not every young Black, Hispanic or Asian is a gang member
* Not every tattooed white man is a member of the Arian Brotherhood
* Not every German in the 1930’s and 40’s was a Nazi
* Not all Jews are wealthy bankers or jewelers
* Not all Christians blame Jews for Jesus’ death
* Not all Tele-Evangelists are slime-ball, money hungry preachers
Only the ignorant, fearful, insecure or unforgiving judge a book by its cover or a person by the color of their skin or a group by their loudest member … we are not one of those people and most likely, you never have been. Congratulations, we have won a great battle.
From this point on there is no need to defend ourselves or defend our nation from the accusers … however, there is still much work to be done. We need to be a part of that process and engage the day.
God is looking for a few righteous people … how many only He knows … will you be one? What does it take to qualify as righteous before God? This takes us to our second Bible story this morning.
2 Samuel 21 NKJV
1 ¶ Now there was a famine in the days of David for three years, year after year; and David inquired of the LORD. And the LORD answered, "It is because of Saul and his bloodthirsty house, because he killed the Gibeonites."
2 So the king called the Gibeonites and spoke to them. Now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; the children of Israel had sworn protection to them, but Saul had sought to kill them in his zeal for the children of Israel and Judah.
3 Therefore David said to the Gibeonites, "What shall I do for you? And with what shall I make atonement, that you may bless the inheritance of the LORD?"
4 And the Gibeonites said to him, "We will have no silver or gold from Saul or from his house, nor shall you kill any man in Israel for us." So he said, "Whatever you say, I will do for you."
5 Then they answered the king, "As for the man who consumed us and plotted against us, that we should be destroyed from remaining in any of the territories of Israel,
6 "let seven men of his descendants be delivered to us, and we will hang them before the LORD in Gibeah of Saul, whom the LORD chose." And the king said, "I will give them."
Once when the nation of Israel was experiencing a famine David inquired of the Lord as to why and God told David that it was because a former King of Israel and an earlier generation had wrongfully mistreated a group of people living within the borders of Israel. As David sought remedy he found that only one thing would satisfy the injustice.
Seven descendants of the former King, representing completeness, would have to be hanged to make atonement and restore God’s blessings to the nation. It is the same in this day for any nation and each individual … the old man and his ways must be fully dealt with by hanging him on the tree … I speak of the cross of Calvary.
A nation can survive with only a few righteous people standing in the gap and making up a hedge of protection around it. However, for a nation to thrive it takes that nation recognizing and dealing with their past sins. This is what Nineveh experienced in the wake of Jonah’s preaching.
Believing that the Lord still wants to do great things in and through our nation, what must we do in our day? This is our chance to:
1. Get right with God
* Hang our old man and his old ways on the cross
2. Pray
* Talk to God about our nation’s needs.
3. Influence Others
* Talk to our nation about God’s needs.
* Speak up and Stand up for what is right
* If we really care about our nation being right with God, we will work on ourselves and influence others to make it better
* Our nation will be right with God only after we are
Only those who love a thing will attempt to change it for the better.
