Spiritual
Resolutions
Philippians 3: 12
– 14.
Introduction
For
the first Sunday of the new year, I want to begin by asking you a riddle. There were four frogs sitting on a log. Three frogs decided to jump off the log. How many frogs are still on the log? Four.
There’s a difference between deciding and doing.
In
my opinion, this is the biggest problem with making New Year’s
Resolutions. Most people have a hard
time keeping their resolutions, because there is a difference between deciding
and doing. It is easy to decide. It is much more difficult to actually do it.
If
you have not already made your New Year’s Resolution, then I am here to help
you this morning. Here is a list of the
top ten most popular New Year’s Resolutions:
Get
Organized
Help
Others
Learn
Something New
Get
Out of Debt
Quit
Drinking Alcohol
Enjoy
Life More
Quit
Smoking
Lose
Weight
Exercise
More
Spend
More Time with Family and Friends[1]
Perhaps
these are your resolutions for 2013. If
so, you are in good company and you have decided that you want to become a
better person in the next 365 days (360 days, since five days have already
passed).
There
are no New Year’s Resolutions in the Bible.
But, that does not mean there is anything wrong with making
resolutions. New Year’s Resolutions are
actually a good thing. Our resolutions
indicate that we really do want to become better persons. After all, no one resolves to become a
sloppier, less caring or more evil person.
However,
there is no power in a New Year’s Resolution.
There is a difference between resolving something and doing
something. And, motivation is
important. If we can’t stay motivated
beyond January 15, then we are not going to change.
Actually,
I would go a step farther than that and say it is almost impossible for people
to change. It is a rare person who
resolves to lose weight at the beginning of the year, sticks with it, and makes
a big change in their life. But, with
God all things are possible. You may not
be able to change your life. But, God
can change your life.
This
leads me to think we ought to make resolutions to become the kind of people God
wants us to be. Instead of resolving to
become a better person, perhaps we should resolve to become the kind of
Christians God wants us to be. We ought
to make Spiritual Resolutions.
Philippians
3: 12 – 14… “12 Not
that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I
press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.13 Brothers,
I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do:
Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14 I
press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me
heavenward in Christ Jesus.”
These
words were written by the Apostle Paul.
There was no one like Paul in the entire New Testament. In the Book of Acts, we read about three long
missionary journeys that Paul took to spread the Gospel into regions where
people had never heard of Jesus before.
Paul was a preacher who supported himself through the secular work of
making and selling tents. Wherever Paul
made new Christian converts, he organized them into churches. Then, Paul kept up with these churches by training
their ministers, visiting them periodically and writing letters to help resolve
their church conflicts.
Paul
had been trained to be a Jewish Pharisee.
As a result, he knew the Old Testament and could quote large
sections. In Paul’s letters to the
churches, he demonstrates that he had a good working knowledge of Greek
rhetoric. There was no one who could
stack up to Paul’s qualifications in theology, preaching, church planting and
church leadership.
Yet,
here in Philippians 3, Paul says something remarkable about himself. He does not think he is perfect. He still has room to grow and improve. He is still striving toward the goal of
becoming like Jesus.
I
don’t think any of us would compare ourselves to Paul. If we did compare ourselves, we would not
think that we are better Christians than Paul.
Paul has room to grow, and so do we.
No matter who you are or how long you have been a Christian, you still
have room to grow to become more like Jesus.
Spend Time with God
Mark 1: 35 – 39…
“35 Very
early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and
went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. 36 Simon
and his companions went to look for him, 37 and
when they found him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!”
38 Jesus
replied, “Let us go somewhere else—to the nearby villages—so I can preach there
also. That is why I have come.” 39 So
he traveled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out
demons.”
It
seems pretty obvious that if our goal is to become more like Jesus, then Jesus
is our model. And, one of the things we
see in the Gospels is that Jesus spent time with God. This is not the only time Jesus did
this. In fact, Jesus regularly pulled
away from his disciples and from the crowds in order to be alone with God.
The
Christian faith is not a religion.
Religion is a human-centered attempt to gain God’s approval through the
good things we do. The Christian faith
is not a philosophy. Philosophy is a way
of thinking. The Christian faith is a
relationship with God. Since the
Christian faith is a relationship with God, we need to treat our faith like we
treat all important relationships. We
need to invest in the relationship.
It
is important to keep in mind that God himself has initiated this
relationship. God has invited us into
this relationship by sending his Son as the only way to have our sins forgiven
and enter into relationship with God.
AND…God has made himself accessible to us. God has revealed himself to us through the
written word of the Bible.
The
Bible describes the ways God has been involved in historical events. The Bible describes God’s expectations for
his people. And, the Bible describes how
God’s expectations were lived out in the life of his Son, Jesus.
Reading
the Bible is one way to invest in our relationship with God. Of course, I don’t mean to read the Bible
like we read other literature. Yes,
there is a lot of information contained in the Bible. But, our goal in reading the Bible should not
be to receive or comprehend more information.
Instead, we read the Bible in
order to experience God and to draw closer to God by hearing from God.
This
is why I recommend reading the Bible prayerfully. I don’t recommend for you to try to read all
150 Psalms in one sitting or to try memorizing all the kings of Israel and
Judah in proper order. I think it is
better to read short passages of Scripture and to pray a simple prayer… “Lord,
what are you saying to me in this Scripture?”
Just
like any relationship, your relationship with God requires communication. And communication is a two way street. It involves both speaking and listening. We speak to God in prayer. We listen to God by hearing God speak to us
through the words of the Bible.
If
you want to grow closer to God, it is important to follow Jesus’ example. Jesus withdrew from his disciples and from
the crowds so that he could be alone with God.
But, notice that Jesus did not live a solitary life with God. Jesus lived in community with his disciples… And, Jesus did something else… Jesus served the needs of others.
Serve Others
In
Mark 1, we see Jesus withdrawing to be alone with God, and then we see Jesus
reentering life to engage the needs of others.
The
last statement in Mark 1: 39 is a little intimidating if we want to be like
Jesus. It tells us that Jesus went “throughout
Galilee…driving out demons.” Does that
mean we are supposed to cast out demons if we want to be like Jesus? In some ways, that is exactly what we are
supposed to do.
One
of the ways the Gospel of Mark presents the life and ministry of Jesus is to
emphasize the concept of the Kingdom of God.
While some people thought that the Kingdom of God was a political
kingdom equal to the Nation of Israel.
Jesus taught something different.
The Kingdom of God did not have geographical borders. It is a spiritual Kingdom which calls
individual men and women to submit themselves to the sovereignty of God. But, before someone can submit to God as
their King, they must first be released from their present king.
In
some cases, Jesus releases people from demonic possession. In one case, Jesus tried to help a man who was
possessed by his own wealth and possessions.
There are even cases where Jesus serves basic human needs like feeding
hungry people and helping sick people.
In each of these, Jesus is helping people move from the kingdom of the
world to the Kingdom of God.
Anytime
we serve the physical needs of other people in the name of Jesus, we are
releasing them from earthly bondage.
This involves feeding the hungry, visiting the sick, meeting financial
needs, responding to disasters, or simply being a friend to someone who’s life
is falling apart.
Be a Witness
Mark
also tells us that Jesus went “throughout Galilee preaching.” Jesus did more than simply serve physical
needs. Jesus also told people about the
Kingdom of God and invited them to allow God to become their King. If we want to be more like Jesus, we will
meet physical needs and spiritual needs.
This is the work of witnessing to others.
Some
people have a gift for confronting other people with the Gospel. They can knock on the door of a stranger and
say, “If you died right now, would you go to Heaven or Hell?” If you have that gift, just keep doing what
you are doing. I am not offering any
suggestions for you. I am talking to
everyone else.
If
you don’t have the gift of confronting strangers with the Gospel, there are two
other ways for you to be a witness.
One
way is through serving physical needs.
While I do not believe feeding the hungry and taking care of the sick
are the same thing as witnessing, I do believe they go hand in hand. It is possible to be a witness by feeding the
hungry only if you also speak a word of Gospel when you offer them food. It doesn’t have to be an elaborate
presentation of the Gospel. It could be
as simple as saying something like, “I am helping you because I am a Christian. I want you to experience God’s love the way I
have.”
Another
biblical way to be a witness is what we read in 1 Peter 3: 15…
1 Peter 3: 15…
“15 But
in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer
to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do
this with gentleness and respect…”
As
Christians, we live with hope. The hope
of Heaven…the hope that this world is not all there is…the hope that things
will not always get worse…the hope that God will give us the strength we need
to face the struggles of life…
Not
everyone lives with this kind of hope.
But other people ought to notice that your life is different from
theirs. And that should open up
conversations about what makes your life different. How will you answer that question?
We
can use this to make a case for reading the Bible. In reading the Bible we learn more about God and
his love for us. Then, we can share with
others what we have learned from the Bible.
But,
I think it is best to speak about your experience. To tell others how God has changed your life
by giving you peace in the midst of life’s storms. To talk about how you experience God’s
presence in both the little things and the big things in life.
Conclusion: Live in the Present
Matthew 6: 33 – 34…
“33 But
seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be
given to you as well. 34 Therefore
do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has
enough trouble of its own.”
Living
in the present is hard for some people.
Some people would rather relive the past than face the present—even though
the past cannot be repeated. Other
people prefer to worry about the future—even though worrying cannot change
anything.
Every
day we should remind ourselves that the past is gone and the future hasn’t
happened yet. All we have is today.
The
most important question is “How am I going to live today?”
Jesus
has an answer to that question…Live today with the Kingdom of God and God’s
Righteousness as your first priority.
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