Sunday, June 14, 2020

Good Authority


Gtcotr/ss061420

Let’s spend our time together this morning having a little serious-minded fun. Allow me to use the evident truth to pick on those of us who are Believer’s in Jesus today. If you are not a Believer in Jesus, sit back and enjoy listening while we reassess our paradigms and refocus our perspectives a little. Allow me to start the process by making this statement of fact: (Note: We are a phone friendly Church…)

God is not thinking like you are thinking unless you are thinking like He is thinking.

You can give that a little time to soak in while we turn to Isaiah 55.

Isaiah 55 NKJV
6  Seek the LORD while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near.
7  Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts; Let him return to the LORD, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon.

Hold that place right there in Isaiah 55 for a minute and let me say …

I have it on Good Authority that:
·        Jesus is not a Democrat
·        Jesus is not a Republican
·        Jesus is not an Independent
·        Jesus is not a Liberal
·        Jesus is not a Conservative
·        Jesus is not a Moderate
·        Jesus is not a Socialist
·        Jesus is not a Fascist
·        Jesus is not an Anarchist
I have it on Good Authority that:
·        Jesus is not even an American
·        Jesus is not Black
·        Jesus is not White
·        Jesus is not Asian
·        Jesus is not Hispanic
·        Jesus is not Catholic
·        Jesus is not a Protestant

Rather: Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, the One True Messiah, the only Savior of the World, the Prince of Peace, the King of Kings, and the Lord of Lords.

And by the way … I also have it on Good Authority that Jesus is not a fan of CNN or Fox News.

In fact, I have it on Good Authority that Jesus is not primarily focused on or predominantly fighting for:
·        Your constitutional rights
·        Your civil rights
·        Your sense of justice
·        Your educated opinion
·        Your favorite football-team
·        Or even your personal or special interest group’s heart-felt concerns

However, Jesus has demonstrated His willingness to fight and die for one thing, and only one thing … your immortal soul! Jesus is fully committed to saving you from this world, its lusts, pride, problems, and its promises.

I have it on Good Authority that Jesus is against disorder and chaos, abuse and injustice, rioting, looting and murder … but who isn’t? The devil isn’t, that’s who! Did you hold your place in the book of Isaiah, chapter 55?

Isaiah 55
8  “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD.
9  “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.”

God is not embarrassed, intimidated, or shy when it comes to discussing the issues at hand in America and around the world today. God has a simple, fail-safe system to decide and define what is right and what is wrong. Here it is: He is right and everyone who does not agree with Him is wrong. God is unanimous in His opinion. This is why earlier I said:

God is not thinking like you are thinking unless you are thinking like He is thinking.

God does not quibble when it comes to dividing sin from sinners and right from wrong. He calls godliness right and He calls ungodliness wrong. God does not have any trouble judging the difference between protests and rioting, abuse and protection, opinion and fact, wisdom and lunacy, and neither should we.

It is wrong in the eyes of God to judge others by the color of their skin, the badge on their uniform, their political affiliation, or the sins of their fathers.

America is in trouble and this is not the first-time friends have been locked in bitter disputes, one towards the other, or brother has taken up arms in battle against his brother, families torn apart, cities ravaged, and the nation divided. Jesus said, “A house divided against itself cannot stand.”

This morning we need to pray for America, the land of the free, the home of the brave, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. We need to pray like President Abraham Lincoln prayed when he faced the task of leading a divided nation subject to this world’s temptations and the woes of evil forces.

Tensions inflamed our nation in 1860 when The election of Abraham Lincoln was labeled as an act of war by some Governors and Congressmen. The country was told by a group of politicians that “armies would soon come to seize slaves and force white woman to marry black men.”

On November 9, 1860 South Carolina congressman John Winsmith drafted a resolution to call the election of Abraham Lincoln, as U.S. President, a Hostile Act. Faced with such organized opposition, Lincoln said, and I quote:
“I am rather inclined to silence, and whether that be wise or not, it is at least more unusual nowadays to find a man who can hold his tongue than to find one who cannot.”

Abraham Lincoln was the President of both the United, and the Divided, States of America in one of the most difficult periods of our 244-year history. During his 49 months in office Lincoln issued no less than 9 national proclamations directing the citizens of America to re-assess their lives and re-center their focus on God as our nation’s only hope.

By the way, I have long been a student of history and it is interesting to me that The Civil War, April 12, 1861 to April 9, 1865, was a war of ideologies between Democrats and Republicans, much like many imagine we are experiencing today. The struggle was over who was going to be the President and leader of the nation. One political party was willing to tear the country apart and even go to war against family and kill their own people if they did not get their way. It might surprise many around the world to know which political party was pro-life and pro-equality, and which one was pro-slavery and willing to divide and destroy our nation rather than accept Abraham Lincoln as their president.

During the war, Lincoln overheard someone remark that he hoped "the Lord was on the Union's side." Lincoln responded with this sharp rebuke:
I am not at all concerned about that, for I know that the Lord is always on the side of the right. But it is my constant anxiety and prayer that I and this nation should be on the Lord's side.”

Where is God in all of this today? The same place He was in 1863 and in 1963 which is the same place He will be 2063 and beyond.

Every day, in many ways, God is offering us the only answer that will fix the problem instead of prolonging it or making it worse. This trouble we are facing in America is not a race issue, it is a responsibility issue. God will hold each one of us responsible for what we think, say, and do in these troubled times. He has given us clear instructions:

Philippians 2:3  Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.

When we humble ourselves, like President Lincoln did, and seek God’s face in hopes He will show us His way; and when we begin to esteem others better than ourselves and take responsibility for our own prejudice, pride and problems … then perhaps we have a chance to see and be the change we need in America. You may be the only chance your children, your friends and your enemies have to see the Light that will challenge their hearts and ultimately change their minds.

Peace has to begin in hearts before it can happen in homes. The salvation of our nation will not depend on what happens in the White House but rather on what happens in your house.

Who benefits from families, friends, communities, races, or nations being divided? The devil does. I preached two sermons on Sunday, March 19, 2017, “Loud Lies” and “The Quiet Truth”. From those sermons we learned:

Many times the loudest voice is the voice of the devil and destruction. However, loud lies cannot drown out the quiet and everlasting Truth.

What is truth?
·        John 14:6 Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life …”

Come to Christ and submit to the Truth instead of giving your life to:
·        A political paradigm (Political Ideologies of any type)
·        A polished presentation (The love of money is the root of all evil)
·        A whitewashed coverup (The devil is a liar and the father of lies)
·        A hate-filled angry agenda (Anger does not accomplish God’s will)
·        A racial profile (Refuse to be confined or defined by others – do you!)
·        A personal opinion (Do not confuse opinion or commentary for truth)
·        A frustrated fantasy (The Confederate States of America or CHAZ)
·        Empty solutions (Stop wasting precious time and resources …)

We should be defending the police instead of talking about defunding them.

This is the time to embrace your personal moral confidence and not give in to the pressure to embrace a false personal guilt of not being enough or doing enough or saying enough.

If you are racists or prejudice or abusive or brutal, repent, apologize and change. If you are not, do not abandon your moral confidence in hopes it will appease others. I have it on Good Authority that a lie will never fix the problem. When you have done nothing wrong, refuse to run. Do not be afraid to stand and speak the truth but stop short of hatred and violence.

Now, if you claim to be a Born-Again Believer in Jesus Christ as the Son of God and Savior of the world … act like it! Get busy helping Jesus save some folks from an eternity in hell. When you get to heaven, you, and others you influence will feel much better about your life accomplishments.

And, I have it on Good Authority that you will receive the crown of life. (Endure temptations - James 1:12 & Don’t fear the devil - Revelation 2:10)