Responsibility Knocks
Scripture Reading: Psalm 20
1 May the LORD answer you in the day of trouble;
May the name of the God of Jacob defend you;
2 May He send you help from the sanctuary,
And strengthen you out of Zion;
3 May He remember all your offerings,
And accept your burnt sacrifice. Selah
4 May He grant you according to your heart’s desire,
And fulfill all your purpose.
5 We will rejoice in your salvation,
And in the name of our God we will set up our banners!
May the LORD fulfill all your petitions.
6 Now I know that the LORD saves His anointed;
He will answer him from His holy heaven
With the saving strength of His right hand.
7 Some trust in chariots, and some in horses;
But we will remember the name of the LORD our God.
8 They have bowed down and fallen;
But we have risen and stand upright.
9 Save, LORD!
May the King answer us when we call.
Last week we were encouraged to grow up and get the keys to the car, spiritually.
We talked about craving the pure milk of God’s word so we can be nourished and
mature in our faith, but what happens next. What do we do as we mature in Christ?
The psalm I just read speaks of an awesome relationship with the God of Jacob, our
Savior and Creator. He will defend and protect us in our troubled times, be our help
and our strength, accept our offerings and our sacrifices, grant us our heart’s
desire and fulfill all our purposes. I’m going to stop there with that last part.
Everyone always hears that He wants to grant us the desires of our heart but what
about that last part; fulfilling all our purpose. What does that mean? What is our
purpose? We talked before about glorifying God being our purpose, but how do we
do that? What glorifies God?
Last week I talked about things that Cameron is allowed to do that Kimberly isn’t
allowed to do because of their different maturity levels. The same was true
concerning things Kristen is permitted to do that Cameron and Kimberly can’t do.
This week I want to look at the other side of the coin. When Cameron has to mow
the lawn or get all the recyclables together and the garbage out to the curb while
Kimberly is just running around playing, I’m sure it doesn’t seem right. When
Kristen has to pay rent for herself and her husband with her money but Cameron
can just take all his birthday money and by video games, I’m aware that it doesn’t
seem fair. When Jeff works forty long, hard hours and comes home and doesn’t
even get to see his check because it’s paying the rent or the electric bill or some
other utility and Kristen & Darrel get to use their money to buy things they want like
new cell phones or an iPods, I know it does not seem equitable! But you know
what? Different levels of maturity come with different levels of responsibility.
Kristen is not expected to pay all the utility and grocery bills yet, and Cameron is not
required to pay any rent yet, and Kimberly doesn’t have to take out any garbage
yet, but there will be a time when those responsibilities will fall to them and that will
be when their maturity level dictates it.
Now lets get back to what glorifies God. I believe it glorifies God when we trust Him
enough to do what He says. Scripture tells us that to obey is better than sacrifice (1
Samuel 15:22). Jesus tells us that all the law and the prophets can fit into just two
commands.
Matthew 22:37-40
37 Jesus said to him, “ ‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your
heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and
great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your
neighbor as yourself.’ 40 On these two commandments hang all the Law
and the Prophets.”
It sounds simple enough, right? The problem we have with actually doing it is that
we have been so indoctrinated into the world and the way the world sees things that
sometimes we don’t even recognize when we step outside of those boundaries.
In the book of Hebrews, the writer gives us a great list that will help us see those
boundaries. Sort of like a ‘Things to Do’ list for maturing Christians. Remember
that like a good parent, God repeats important things so that we are sure to pick up
on them. With that said, I’d like to dive in to the ‘let us’ patch of scriptures from
Hebrews. Pretty interestingly this entails twelve verses and one of the verses has a
double portion. Just like Israel (aka Jacob) had twelve sons and one of them had a
double portion. God doesn’t do anything by accident so I thought it was kind of a
neat thing to notice. Anyway, let’s break them down one at a time.
Hebrews 4:1, Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us
fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it. We need to have that
healthy fear of the Lord that will keep us honest, so to speak. That group of
Israelites that died in the desert during the forty years after Moses led them out of
Egypt, did not make it into the promised land, yet they were sons of Abraham. The
writer of Hebrews, wants us to realize that we too can come short if we don’t take
our faith seriously.
Hebrew 4:11, Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall
according to the same example of disobedience. We have to stay diligent and
obedient so the same thing will not happen to us. To come so close but never
make it in. Now, I’m not necessarily taking about our salvation here. I’m referring to
the Lord’s rest that we should have even now. It’s the rest that comes with the
peace that passes understanding, the joy unspeakable that so many seem to be
lacking.
Hebrews 4:14, Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed
through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our
confession. No matter what comes at you or who tries to make you doubt what
you have believed, hold fast to what you know. I read the preface to the book the
‘DaVinci Deception’ so believe me, there are those who will try to make you doubt
what you have confessed. Don’t let it happen.
Hebrews 4:16, Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we
may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. Yeshua was
tempted as we are tempted. He lived in flesh as we do. He will not turn us away
because we have flaws. He will be the one to fix those flaws. Therefore we can
come boldly before the throne in the same way that Kimberly will run and jump on
Jeff when he gets home from work. She doesn’t have to say, “Oh, I did something
wrong today so I shouldn’t bother him.” No she goes right in because she knows
that her daddy loves her regardless. We have to hold fast to the fact that we have
obtained grace through His blood. We cannot allow the enemy to shame us into
believing that we’ve lost access to the Father.
Hebrews 6:1, Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles
of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of
repentance from dead works and of faith toward God. We talked about this
last week. We must continue to mature in Christ, press forward toward perfection;
not remaining stagnant. Let’s get past just the laying of the foundation and get to
building the house. And yes, we should strive for perfection. We should expect
nothing less. Some people think it is impossible but Scripture clearly tells us that
with God all things are possible (Matthew 19:26, Mark 9:23, Mark 10:23, Luke 18:
27). This tells us that perfection should always remain our goal, our expectation.
And as we press on toward that perfection, we remember that we have grace. We
should not be content with imperfection because we have grace.
Hebrews 10:22a, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith.
Let’s make sure our relationship with God is a close one. Remember that Adam
and Eve hid from Him and that was a bad thing. The veil has been removed so with
the righteousness we have in Christ we can approach with a true heart.
Hebrews 10:23, Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without
wavering, for He who promised is faithful. We have already talked about
holding fast to our confession of Christ. Now we must always hold fast to our
confession of hope. Those visions that He gives you, you need to hold on to
without wavering, because you know that God is faithful. No matter what the
circumstances appear.
Hebrews 10:24, And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and
good works. Now here’s where we can really challenge the worldliness of
our flesh. We need to ALWAYS consider the other person. This is especially
helpful in avoiding bitterness amongst one another and also the unbeliever we may
be purposed to witness to.
Hebrews 12:1b, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily
ensnares us. Stay away from the things, people, or circumstances that will cause
you to sin. Period. As we spoke about last week, when you see yourself wandering
into something that you know will lead to temptation, do like Joseph did and run.
Hebrews 12:1c, let us run with endurance the race that is set before us. You
know how some people will start out the lap really fast but as they continue they get
slower and slower until they are eventually walking and everyone else is passing
them. We should not be like that. We are not to grow weary in well doing. So what
if someone took advantage of you, they did worse to Christ. And it says that we
should run the race that is before ‘us’. Not everyone is purposed to do the exact
same thing in the exact same way. We have to run ‘our’ race without any concern
or competition about the race someone else may be running. We should desire to
fulfill all ‘our’ purpose.
Hebrews 12:28b, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably
with reverence and godly fear. Grace and mercy are almost interchangeable.
We want grace and mercy given to us but many times we are not willing to freely
give grace and mercy to others; someone who cuts you off in traffic or talks about
you behind your back. Giving grace without requiring anything in return is a very
good way for us to serve God acceptably. Just as we must come boldly before the
throne of grace knowing that we have been given mercy, we also must provide
grace and mercy to others.
Hebrews 13:13, Therefore let us go forth to Him, outside the camp, bearing
His reproach. This one may take a bit more explanation to be understood.
Scripture tells us that cursed is anyone that hangs on a tree. That’s what Jesus did
for us; He took that curse of sin and death so we wouldn’t have to. Going outside
the camp can have many subtle meanings. We need to go outside of our worldly
ways; outside of what the world expects from us and take His reproach. We have to
be aware that the world is not supposed to like us. We need to go outside of our
comfort zone to reach the lost of this world, following the example that Yeshua gave
us.
Hebrews 13:15, Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of
praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name. This
one is such an important thing for us to do. Do we all know what continually
means? That’s right, it means always, all the time. Can we complain and give
praise to God at the same time? No. If we are continually offering the sacrifice of
praise to God, we must lay down all complaining and anger and bitterness and
anything else that will keep us from praising God with our whole heart.
The writer of Hebrews has laid out these 13 things that the maturing believer should
see as their new responsibility. But just as we could choose not to take out the
garbage or wash the dishes or straighten up behind ourselves, so we can lay aside
the spiritual responsibilities we have in Him. But what would our actual home look
like if no one took responsibility for the things that needed to be done? Now
consider what the church of Christ looks like when so many lay aside these
responsibilities. We are to be glorifying God, not making Him look bad to the
unbelieving world. So, are you fulfilling your responsibilities?
Sermon by: Denise Baxley
Date: September 28, 2008
Scripture Reading: Psalm 20
1 May the LORD answer you in the day of trouble;
May the name of the God of Jacob defend you;
2 May He send you help from the sanctuary,
And strengthen you out of Zion;
3 May He remember all your offerings,
And accept your burnt sacrifice. Selah
4 May He grant you according to your heart’s desire,
And fulfill all your purpose.
5 We will rejoice in your salvation,
And in the name of our God we will set up our banners!
May the LORD fulfill all your petitions.
6 Now I know that the LORD saves His anointed;
He will answer him from His holy heaven
With the saving strength of His right hand.
7 Some trust in chariots, and some in horses;
But we will remember the name of the LORD our God.
8 They have bowed down and fallen;
But we have risen and stand upright.
9 Save, LORD!
May the King answer us when we call.
Last week we were encouraged to grow up and get the keys to the car, spiritually.
We talked about craving the pure milk of God’s word so we can be nourished and
mature in our faith, but what happens next. What do we do as we mature in Christ?
The psalm I just read speaks of an awesome relationship with the God of Jacob, our
Savior and Creator. He will defend and protect us in our troubled times, be our help
and our strength, accept our offerings and our sacrifices, grant us our heart’s
desire and fulfill all our purposes. I’m going to stop there with that last part.
Everyone always hears that He wants to grant us the desires of our heart but what
about that last part; fulfilling all our purpose. What does that mean? What is our
purpose? We talked before about glorifying God being our purpose, but how do we
do that? What glorifies God?
Last week I talked about things that Cameron is allowed to do that Kimberly isn’t
allowed to do because of their different maturity levels. The same was true
concerning things Kristen is permitted to do that Cameron and Kimberly can’t do.
This week I want to look at the other side of the coin. When Cameron has to mow
the lawn or get all the recyclables together and the garbage out to the curb while
Kimberly is just running around playing, I’m sure it doesn’t seem right. When
Kristen has to pay rent for herself and her husband with her money but Cameron
can just take all his birthday money and by video games, I’m aware that it doesn’t
seem fair. When Jeff works forty long, hard hours and comes home and doesn’t
even get to see his check because it’s paying the rent or the electric bill or some
other utility and Kristen & Darrel get to use their money to buy things they want like
new cell phones or an iPods, I know it does not seem equitable! But you know
what? Different levels of maturity come with different levels of responsibility.
Kristen is not expected to pay all the utility and grocery bills yet, and Cameron is not
required to pay any rent yet, and Kimberly doesn’t have to take out any garbage
yet, but there will be a time when those responsibilities will fall to them and that will
be when their maturity level dictates it.
Now lets get back to what glorifies God. I believe it glorifies God when we trust Him
enough to do what He says. Scripture tells us that to obey is better than sacrifice (1
Samuel 15:22). Jesus tells us that all the law and the prophets can fit into just two
commands.
Matthew 22:37-40
37 Jesus said to him, “ ‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your
heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and
great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your
neighbor as yourself.’ 40 On these two commandments hang all the Law
and the Prophets.”
It sounds simple enough, right? The problem we have with actually doing it is that
we have been so indoctrinated into the world and the way the world sees things that
sometimes we don’t even recognize when we step outside of those boundaries.
In the book of Hebrews, the writer gives us a great list that will help us see those
boundaries. Sort of like a ‘Things to Do’ list for maturing Christians. Remember
that like a good parent, God repeats important things so that we are sure to pick up
on them. With that said, I’d like to dive in to the ‘let us’ patch of scriptures from
Hebrews. Pretty interestingly this entails twelve verses and one of the verses has a
double portion. Just like Israel (aka Jacob) had twelve sons and one of them had a
double portion. God doesn’t do anything by accident so I thought it was kind of a
neat thing to notice. Anyway, let’s break them down one at a time.
Hebrews 4:1, Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us
fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it. We need to have that
healthy fear of the Lord that will keep us honest, so to speak. That group of
Israelites that died in the desert during the forty years after Moses led them out of
Egypt, did not make it into the promised land, yet they were sons of Abraham. The
writer of Hebrews, wants us to realize that we too can come short if we don’t take
our faith seriously.
Hebrew 4:11, Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall
according to the same example of disobedience. We have to stay diligent and
obedient so the same thing will not happen to us. To come so close but never
make it in. Now, I’m not necessarily taking about our salvation here. I’m referring to
the Lord’s rest that we should have even now. It’s the rest that comes with the
peace that passes understanding, the joy unspeakable that so many seem to be
lacking.
Hebrews 4:14, Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed
through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our
confession. No matter what comes at you or who tries to make you doubt what
you have believed, hold fast to what you know. I read the preface to the book the
‘DaVinci Deception’ so believe me, there are those who will try to make you doubt
what you have confessed. Don’t let it happen.
Hebrews 4:16, Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we
may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. Yeshua was
tempted as we are tempted. He lived in flesh as we do. He will not turn us away
because we have flaws. He will be the one to fix those flaws. Therefore we can
come boldly before the throne in the same way that Kimberly will run and jump on
Jeff when he gets home from work. She doesn’t have to say, “Oh, I did something
wrong today so I shouldn’t bother him.” No she goes right in because she knows
that her daddy loves her regardless. We have to hold fast to the fact that we have
obtained grace through His blood. We cannot allow the enemy to shame us into
believing that we’ve lost access to the Father.
Hebrews 6:1, Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles
of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of
repentance from dead works and of faith toward God. We talked about this
last week. We must continue to mature in Christ, press forward toward perfection;
not remaining stagnant. Let’s get past just the laying of the foundation and get to
building the house. And yes, we should strive for perfection. We should expect
nothing less. Some people think it is impossible but Scripture clearly tells us that
with God all things are possible (Matthew 19:26, Mark 9:23, Mark 10:23, Luke 18:
27). This tells us that perfection should always remain our goal, our expectation.
And as we press on toward that perfection, we remember that we have grace. We
should not be content with imperfection because we have grace.
Hebrews 10:22a, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith.
Let’s make sure our relationship with God is a close one. Remember that Adam
and Eve hid from Him and that was a bad thing. The veil has been removed so with
the righteousness we have in Christ we can approach with a true heart.
Hebrews 10:23, Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without
wavering, for He who promised is faithful. We have already talked about
holding fast to our confession of Christ. Now we must always hold fast to our
confession of hope. Those visions that He gives you, you need to hold on to
without wavering, because you know that God is faithful. No matter what the
circumstances appear.
Hebrews 10:24, And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and
good works. Now here’s where we can really challenge the worldliness of
our flesh. We need to ALWAYS consider the other person. This is especially
helpful in avoiding bitterness amongst one another and also the unbeliever we may
be purposed to witness to.
Hebrews 12:1b, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily
ensnares us. Stay away from the things, people, or circumstances that will cause
you to sin. Period. As we spoke about last week, when you see yourself wandering
into something that you know will lead to temptation, do like Joseph did and run.
Hebrews 12:1c, let us run with endurance the race that is set before us. You
know how some people will start out the lap really fast but as they continue they get
slower and slower until they are eventually walking and everyone else is passing
them. We should not be like that. We are not to grow weary in well doing. So what
if someone took advantage of you, they did worse to Christ. And it says that we
should run the race that is before ‘us’. Not everyone is purposed to do the exact
same thing in the exact same way. We have to run ‘our’ race without any concern
or competition about the race someone else may be running. We should desire to
fulfill all ‘our’ purpose.
Hebrews 12:28b, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably
with reverence and godly fear. Grace and mercy are almost interchangeable.
We want grace and mercy given to us but many times we are not willing to freely
give grace and mercy to others; someone who cuts you off in traffic or talks about
you behind your back. Giving grace without requiring anything in return is a very
good way for us to serve God acceptably. Just as we must come boldly before the
throne of grace knowing that we have been given mercy, we also must provide
grace and mercy to others.
Hebrews 13:13, Therefore let us go forth to Him, outside the camp, bearing
His reproach. This one may take a bit more explanation to be understood.
Scripture tells us that cursed is anyone that hangs on a tree. That’s what Jesus did
for us; He took that curse of sin and death so we wouldn’t have to. Going outside
the camp can have many subtle meanings. We need to go outside of our worldly
ways; outside of what the world expects from us and take His reproach. We have to
be aware that the world is not supposed to like us. We need to go outside of our
comfort zone to reach the lost of this world, following the example that Yeshua gave
us.
Hebrews 13:15, Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of
praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name. This
one is such an important thing for us to do. Do we all know what continually
means? That’s right, it means always, all the time. Can we complain and give
praise to God at the same time? No. If we are continually offering the sacrifice of
praise to God, we must lay down all complaining and anger and bitterness and
anything else that will keep us from praising God with our whole heart.
The writer of Hebrews has laid out these 13 things that the maturing believer should
see as their new responsibility. But just as we could choose not to take out the
garbage or wash the dishes or straighten up behind ourselves, so we can lay aside
the spiritual responsibilities we have in Him. But what would our actual home look
like if no one took responsibility for the things that needed to be done? Now
consider what the church of Christ looks like when so many lay aside these
responsibilities. We are to be glorifying God, not making Him look bad to the
unbelieving world. So, are you fulfilling your responsibilities?
Sermon by: Denise Baxley
Date: September 28, 2008