 |
Introduction: A.
So you have some problems.
1. Not enough money, not enough education
2. Your parents from the blue collar class, or the poor disadvantaged
class
3. Your parents are too strict, too worldly, too
old fashioned, too detached
4. Society is so wicked, too unsympathetic toward Christians B.
What does one do?!
1. Cop out and blame others.
2. Withdraw from society in paranoia. Hide out in an
3. Gradually yield to external pressure; surrender over the
long term incrementally. Most likely.
4. Right answer: in the words of lyricist & singer Don
Henley, “Get over it.” C.
This is the world you live in.
1. You do not get to choose the time into which you are born.
You often do not get to choose the circumstances of your
life. And you cannot
change the past.
2. In the popular film “Fellowship of the Ring,” Frodo Baggins
does not want the responsibility that has been thrust
upon him. He says: “I wish
the ring had never come to me. I wish none
of this had happened.” His
companion Gandalf replied: “So do all who
live to see such times, but
that is not for them to decide. All we have
to decide is what to do with
the
time that is given to us.” D.
Paul had every earthly reason to dwell on the past and to bemoan
his current
circumstances.
1. Sacrificed His Reputation - Phil. 3:4-6 a. Paul's Pedigree... b. "After thee,
Benjamin" war cry; named after the greatest warrior in the tribe of Benjamin - Saul. c. He was at the zenith
of Judaism and gave it all up for Christ -
Gal. 1:13-14 2. Surrendered His Potential
for Riches - 3:7-8 a. He counted it but
dung; he really knew how to count! Do we? b. Rich man dies; what
do we ask? c. "How much did he
leave behind?" All of it. d.
$10,000,000.00! Wow, he must
have been a great man! e.
Instead, "He left a big pile of manure, didn't he?" f. Crude? It’s the Apostle
Paul's word for it. 3. Suffered Reverses. 1. Chains - Phil. a. No, it worked
out for the good. b. Phil. c. Chains caused
Paul joy. 2. Critics - 1:15-18 a. If the Gospel
is preached, we have cause to rejoice. b. The power
is in the Gospel and not in who or why.
3. Crises - 1:19-24 a. "Because
of my crises, Christ is magnified.” b. The way
we handle chains, critics and crises will make
Christ bigger or smaller in the eyes of others. 4. Everything we have can be
taken from us except Christ, and if all we
have left is our relationship with the Lord,
then we have what counts.
1. Put a true servant of Christ like Paul in prison, and
he teaches his guards; send false brethren preaching
Christ to make life
difficult for him in jail, and he rejoices
that Christ is preached. Let
him live, and he preaches Christ; kill him,
and he gets to go be
with Christ. Satan and circumstances can’t
win against a true
servant of the Lord with this attitude! E.
How can we do this?!
1. We were made in the image of God. To suggest that an eternal
soul and the ability to reason are all that compose
that image is a limited and
shallow interpretation.
2. We have been created to have dominion over the earth.
We have power over our environment. While we may not
be able to change the
circumstances of our place in this world,
we have the power, will, and
mind to win in spite of it.
3. Rather than being controlled by circumstances, we take
control of how we will deal with them. Instead of being slaves
to our condition, we can
choose to be masters of our destiny.
4. No beast can do that. You are in the image of God, different
from the animals, given the power to choose, rather
than simply being swept
along by circumstances. F.
What will you do with your time and circumstances?
1. I choose to make opportunities in the midst of adversity.
2. Or, I choose to allow hardship to blind me to opportunities.
3. I choose to think of what is good and right in my life
and draw strength from them.
4. Or, I choose to dwell on the circumstances of my life
that I cannot change and become morbid, despairing, and
paranoid. G.
Why are the young excused from being responsible? 1. Indulgent parents - "They’re
too young; they have a hard time adjusting" 2. Tolerant Brethren - "They’re
too young; they’re in difficult
circumstances."
3. Parents and teachers insult the ability of children when
they make excuses for young people. They teach them
that an excuse is an
acceptable substitute for striving toward
success.
4. You want someone to be part of an organization, to get
involved, to be responsible? Give them responsibility and
trust them to fulfill it. Don’t
hover over them and micromanage. God doesn’t
hound your steps. He
gave you commands and expects you to keep
them. Accountability
breeds maturity. a. Why are so many young
people attracted to cults? b. Ready to sacrifice,
be challenged, be responsible. c. We aren't losing our
children to the world because we are asking
too much, but because we ask too little! d. Blytheville
Bible class commentaries; 8-11 year old kids. e.
Jaime Escalante taught LA Barrio District students, who couldn’t
do basic math, to do AP calculus. When challenged
about asking
too much of them, he replied, “Students will
rise to your level of
expectation.” 5. Climb over the barriers life
raises against you. Get over it! a. Bad environment at home. b. No breaks in life. c. No experience with life. d. Nervous disposition. e. Lack of supervision. f. Excessive peer pressure. 6. In your heart, you know these
excuses will not prevent you from
excelling. Know that they will not satisfy
the Lord, either. 7. Illustration: Last batter in
the game. Winning run is at third and all you
need is a base hit. You strike out. Who do
you blame? I. SAMUEL - BAD ENVIRONMENT AT HOME. A. Eli's sons were wicked beyond the scope
of soap operas, and Eli let it go on
unchecked - 1Sam. 2:22-24, 27-29. 1. What a poor example for little
Samuel growing up in Eli's house! 2. Many are disillusioned by hypocritical
parents. a.
Critical of the brethren, slack in service, different morals at
home. B. But Samuel
rose above the corrupting influence at home and became one of the Lord's most dedicated prophets. 1. 1Sam. II. DAVID - DIDN'T GET ANY BREAKS. A. 1Sam. 16:10-11 1. Causes many to rebel and make
their own breaks sinfully. 2. "You sent brother to college."
"Sis always was your favorite." 3. If you bathe in self-pity, you
come out smelling worse than when you
got in. Do something constructive. B. David stuck with it and made his own
breaks by starting with pleasing God. 1. 1Sam. 17:32-33, 36-37, 42-46 III. JOSIAH - WITH NO EXPERIENCE. A. Some believe a lack of experience is
the same as being handicapped. 1. Josiah didn't need experience
to know and practice the will of the Lord. a. 2Kings 22:1-2 b. Rebuilt house of the
Lord; re-established worship 23:22-23. c. Destroyed the places
of idolatry.
d. Swore an oath of faithfulness - 23:3. 2. I'm sure there were some who
said, "That impulsive, inexperienced kid;
he doesn't know what he is doing." 3. Sometimes age blinds us to the
truth - Job 32:1-9. B. Respect age and wisdom, treasures uncountable;
but not to the point that it
takes precedence over the word of God. 1. Experience is not a prerequisite
to obeying God. IV. JOSEPH - A LONG WAY FROM HOME. A. Genesis 39 - "Potiphar was away, Mrs. Potiphar
wanted to play." 1. "As long as no one sees
me it shouldn't matter." 2. Two will always know -- you
and God. 3. Secrets don't always stay secret: a. Numbers 32:23 -"Be
assured, your sin will find you out."
b. Psalm 140:11 - "Evil shall hunt the violent man to
overthrow him" c.
Isaiah 59:12 - "For our transgressions are multiplied before
you, and our sins testify against us, our transgressions
are ever with
us, and as for our iniquities, we know them." B. Gen. 39:8-9 V. TIMOTHY - HAD A NERVOUS DISPOSITION. A. 1Cor. 1. Timothy was not excused from
serving the Lord. 2. Acts 3. 1Tim. 3 - Paul commissioned
him to see to the ordaining of elders. VI. THREE HEBREW BOYS - UNDER TREMENDOUS PEER PRESSURE. A. Daniel 3 - worshipping Nebuchadnezzar's
statue. 1. "Aw come on, everybody's
doing it." MOST aren't. 2. If they are, so what? Majority killed Christ. 3. Dad used to say, "If everyone
jumped off the B.
Majority is going to hell - Matt. 7:13-14. - That includes your
classmates. 1. Dare to be different and dedicated
to Christ. Daniel 3:13-18. Conclusion: A. These people are heroes; they had four
things in common: 1. They were young, 2. They took responsibility for themselves,
3. They had courage.
4. They got over the limiting circumstances of their lives. B. 1Tim. 1. Have the courage to obey the Gospel and live
for the Lord. 2. Musias |
|