9.00am and 10.30am Sunday 6 June 2004
Rev Des Botting
Readings: Deuteronomy 1:1, 5-8, 19-36, 39-40, 46; Romans 8:26-29
Have you ever been on a plane when its hit turbulence? The aircraft is thrown about and you begin to wonder how much more this aluminium tube, hurtling through space, can take before it breaks apart and (Picture of Sky Diver) you join this sky diver except without the smile on your face because you havent got a parachute.
What do you do when that happens? Do you pray, Lord, Im coming home a bit sooner than I expected. I hope youve got everything ready. You may do that. What you usually do is to fasten your seat belt, take a firm grip of the arm rests, sit tight, and say to yourself, This is going to be bumpy for a while, but, all being well, well make it through. Itll soon pass. But, most of all, you trust the person at the controls. You know you cant do anything, but the pilots can, especially the captain. They know from experience how to handle the situation. And it does pass, otherwise you wouldnt be here this morning.
Lifes like that, too. You get tossed about with the problems or difficulties that youre facing and you wonder how much more can you take before your life falls apart. Ive felt like that at times, when it seemed as though my life was breaking apart and that it would take very little for it to totally disintegrate and be left trying to pick up the pieces.
Jesus warned us that were going to hit turbulence from time to time. He said, In this world you will have trouble.[1] Admittedly, sometimes its of our own making. Other times its through no fault of our own. But one things for sure. It will come. (In fact, life is always delicately poised between normality and abnormality, between sanity and insanity, and it doesnt take much to tip the balance one way or the other. Our bodies are finely tuned and theres only a certain amount of tolerance before we get into the red zone on our control panels that we know it spells danger if we dont take evasive action. Our physical bodies get that message to us one way or another. )
These rough spots can happen especially when youre going through times of change in life, whether from choice or whats been thrust on you by circumstances beyond your control. Its true whatever age or stage youre at. Change is the only constant in this life, that is, apart from God.
So what are you to do at these times? Youd do exactly the same as on a plane. That is, you fasten your seat belt, sit tight, pray constantly, but most of all, you trust God to see you through. Hes in the pilots seat. Hes in control. This is one of the wonderful truths we learn from the Book of Job. Ive been reading it lately and have been amazed at this mans trust in God. After hed lost everything he owned including his own children, and when his wife urged him to curse God and die, he replied, Dont talk like a fool! If we accept blessings from God, we must accept trouble as well.[2] This book teaches us that nothing comes our way in life unless God permits it. He doesnt make bad things happen, but he does allow them for a purpose, and that purpose is ultimately that the outcome will bring praise and glory to him. So if youre going through turbulence at the moment, youre experiencing one of those bumpy patches in life, be reassured, God wants to use that for his glory and praise - and hell bring you through.
This was the lesson God was trying to teach Israel. Theyd made the mistake of thinking that it was all up to them, and that God really wasnt in control. The problem was that they didnt trust him. Even although hed done all those amazing things in Egypt, parted the waters of the Red Sea so that they could walk through on dry ground, destroyed Pharoahs army in one swish of the waves, was leading them by a cloud through the day and a column of fire through the night, serving meals for probably two million people night and day, they still couldnt, in fact, wouldnt, believe. The way they saw it was that hed unearthed them from Egypt, brought them out into this desert place, and then expected them to conquer a land filled with fortified cities and giants. Moses said that God would lead the way. He was fighting on their side. He would take care of them and see them through. There was no way they could lose. But they were afraid. They were convinced they couldnt do it, and nothing Moses could say would persuade them otherwise. They wouldnt believe that God had everything under control. This shows how Fear can Paralyse. The upshot of it all was that a journey that should have taken them 11 days, took 40 years. As we read, Although it takes only eleven days to walk from Mount Sinai to Kadesh-Barnea by way of the Mount Seir Road, these speeches were not made until forty years after Israel left Egypt.
What did Israel do? Instead of obeying God and going in to take possession of the land, they did a very Presbyterian thing. They
This group of twelve went through the land, and it really was a land flowing with milk and honey. They even brought back a big bunch of grapes. But the verdict of the majority was that there was no way they could capture the fortified cities and fight the giants in the land. It would be foolhardy to even try, and so they stayed in their tents and grumbled. They exaggerated the problem out of all proportion when they said the city walls reached to the sky, and that they were like grasshoppers in comparison to the giants in the land.
I wonder how often we youve done that. Grumbled in your home about whats going on at church. Exaggerated the situation and made it sound much worse than it really was. I think, if were honest, weve all been guilty of that at times.
Weve a number of things on the go that could fall into this category at the moment. For example, were working on nurturing the health of the congregation. At the meeting of Session and the Planning Group at the end of May we identified a number of things we want to promote this year in the life of the congregation. One of them came under the heading of Fun, Food, Fellowship and Warm Fuzzies - more meals and informal times together.
We also want to Develop a Culture of Affirmation in the life of the church. For example, when someone does something well, we tell them and express our appreciation. Something was done along these lines after camp with the little cards that were given to everyone who attended. I know that meant a lot to some of those people.
Another point that came through was the importance of Small Groups to the health of a church. When we went through the areas of our churchs life that we scored lowest on in the questionnaire that a number of you filled in for us earlier in the year, many, if not most, of them can be addressed if we strengthen the small group ministry in the life of our church.
One of the things we plan to do that will help foster small groups is 40 Days of Purpose that well be running at the beginning of next year. 40 Days of Purpose is based on this book The Purpose Driven Life written by Rick Warren from Saddleback Church in California. It has forty short sections that focus on five key areas of church life WORSHIP, FELLOWSHIP, DISCIPLESHIP, MINISTRY, and EVANGELISM. One section is read each day and then during the week everyone meets in a small group to discuss what theyve read. Well be providing every family with a copy of the book (if you havent already got one), and well arrange groups at times so that everyone can attend. Churches in many parts of the world are using it to nurture their churchs life. So watch this space, later in the year.
Were also looking at upgrading the church plant. At nearly every congregational meeting Ive attended since coming to St Davids in the Fields 13 years ago, the subject of toilets has come up. We now have a group working on a site development plan, looking at possible options for upgrading our buildings, and hopefully theyll have something to put before the congregation before the end of this year.
We wont move forward as a church and develop a culture of affirmation in the life of the congregation if we sit grumbling in our tents like Israel did and refuse to venture forward as God leads.
2. They refused to OBEY God. Notice how clear Gods instructions were. the Lord our God told us: You have stayed here long enough. Leave this placeNow you must go and take the land.[5]
No other form of Christian effort brings such immediate, such large and such lasting results as work for the conversion of children. It has many advantages over other forms of work. First of all, children are more easily led to Christ than adults. In the second place, they are more likely to stay converted than those apparently converted at a later period of life. They also make better Christians, as they do not have as much to unlearn as those who have grown old in sin. They have more years of service before them. A person converted at 60 is a soul saved plus 10 years of service; a child saved at 10 is a soul saved plus 60 years of service. This is why its so important to disciple children from a young age.[6]
Dont be discouraged if youve messed up along the way. God gives his children a second chance. He did it for Jonah, and hes doing it here for Israel. The name of this book verifies that. The word Deuteronomy comes from a Greek phrase meaning second law. God was giving his people a second chance. He was giving them the opportunity to renew their covenant with him, and doing what he originally asked them to do.
What you need to do is to renew your agreement with God. God says to you as he said to Israel, You have stayed here long enough. Its time to leave this place and possess your inheritance in Christ. Make it a definite decision on your part to both trust and obey God, to believe that he has everything under control. Caleb and Joshua were the only ones of their generation who got to go into the Promised Land. Why? Because they obeyed God completely.[7] It must be a definite decision. Like the hymn puts it: I have decided to follow Jesus, no turning back, no turning back.
God is calling us as individuals and as a church to move forward, to carry out his great commission to disciple the nations, knowing that this will bring him praise and glory. Lets Just Do it.
[1] John 16:33 NIV
[2] Job 2:10 (All Bible references are from the Contemporary English Version unless otherwise stated.)
[3] Deuteronomy 1:2-3
[4] Deuteronomy 1:22-23
[5] Deuteronomy 1:6-8
[6] Quoted in the World Outreach International publication, Nations, Issue 2, 2004.
[7] Deuteronomy