While preparing a sermon I was using my search feature in
which I came across an interesting word group.
A. The word group was: “let us not”.
1. I was too busy to do anything but notice this
at the time, but later on I was able to get back
to this word group to see, upon further
scrutiny, if what I thought at first was as
interesting under closer inspection and study
.....and it was.
I have preached a message in the past, entitled: “Let Us”.
A. I am quite sure that many of you might remember
it....as I preached it three times, by mistake.
1. You have my word....that shall not be
repeated.
As the title very clearly spells out.....that sermon was
dealing with an admonition of the writers of the Bible
to Christians.....a call to action, if you will.
A. As with all calls to action, we can take them in
a positive or negative light.
ex. What if I said, “let us be more loving”?
1. Some would take this as a call to improve in
this area.
2. Others would see this as an insult....personally
directed towards them...that they,re not loving
1. Whether things are viewed as a positive or a
negative can have a great deal to do with
the attitude in which we approach the subject.
“Let us not” can also be viewed as a negative sermon, but
again.....it’s going to be all in the attitude that you approach
it with.
A. If I said “let us not jump into a pit with five
million fire ants....or ten thousand snakes”.....
would you consider that to be a negative
warning?
1. Why sure you would....it IS A NEGATIVE
WARNING.....BUT WITH POSITIVE
RESULTS.
a. Let us approach this message in the
same way.
I. Romans 14:11-12 - 12So then each of us shall give
account of himself to God. 13Therefore let us not judge
one another anymore, but rather resolve this, not to put a
stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother’s way.
A. Now.....I know that you have heard this all before.
1. This means that we are now and have....every
since we last heard this passage...
NO LONGER JUDGING.....BAD
THOUGHTS, ATTITUDES,
CONCLUSIONS ABOUT OUR FELLOW
CHRISTIANS?!
a. That is great!!.....now I can believe that if
I have preached on a subject, everyone
is going to adjust their lives, so as to
conform to the Word of God.
1.) But you will have to bear with us...
it takes a lot longer for some of us
to start doing what the Bible
commands us.
B. The title of my first main division is actually....
the Word of God.
1. It is a command of God.
a. It doesn’t much matter whether one
agrees with the command or not.....it
doesn’t much matter if that person
can reason away every part of this
command away....or not......it still is the
command of God.
1.) The only thing a person should be
concerned with is this.....”Am I
trying to judge another person?
Do I think that I know what that
other person’s heart is really like?”
C. This passage informs us that each one of us
will give an accounting of ourselves to God.
1. The following sentence, then, grows out
of the first sentence.....it is this (in my
own words)...then we shouldn’t have
time nor the audacity to sit in judgment
on others.
a. On top of that....we better not be the
cause of another Christian brother
or sister stumbling because of our
faulty judgments.
** “Let us not not judge one another anymore”......I know
that someone might want to reason or argue this
statement, but I think that it is quite loud and clear.
1. My question isn’t whether God really means this
the way that it appears.....my question is this.....
“Am I still jumping to conclusions.....getting
attitudes....and passing judgment on my fellow
Christian”?
II. Gal. 5:24-26 - 24And those who are Christ’s have
crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25If we
live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. 26Let us not
become conceited, provoking one another, envying one
another.
A. Again, a pretty thorny passage.
1. I know that I received the Holy Spirit when
I was converted to Christ (Acts 2:38).....but
I also know that this same Spirit of God can
also depart my Temple.
a. I can know that I live in the will and
direction of the Holy Spirit, if I live, and
conduct my life (walk) in ways that are
pleasing to the Holy Spirit.
1.) If my prayer life is alive and active
in the Holy Spirit.
2.) If the fruit of the Holy Spirit is
a part of my everyday walk.
3.) If I am not starved or dead from
a lack of spiritual food....a steady
and rich diet of the Spiritual Word.
B. Living and walking in the spirit are necessary for
Spiritual life.
1. According to this passage, if we wish to
continue to live and walk in the Spirit....we
need to not do some things.
a. Specifically, we are not to become
conceited.....a form of pride.
1.) Conceit can come in many forms...
but almost always we look upon
others from a high and lofty perch
of self righteousness.
a.) Yes, it is good to do right.....
but after we have done our
very best, we need to really
accept the fact that we are
no better than anyone else....
and maybe our pride makes us
less spiritual than the person
that we look down upon.
b. Another part of this passage is this: We
are not to be provoking one another.
1.) The only provocation that God
wants to see is found in Heb. 10:24
(the provoking of others to love
and good works).
a.) Are we stirring up others to
love and good works....or are
stirring up others to distress,
depression, sinful bitterness
and hatred.....and on the list
could go?
C. Lastly, the Apostle Paul addresses those who are
wanting to walk in the Spirit.....he tells them that
there should be no envy of anyone else.
1. With envy comes a perverted form of pride...
a hurt pride....a pride that has been shown
its falsehood.
a. As with several other sins....envy is a
sin problem that we are more likely to
try and deny or hide.
1.) If we are going to live and walk in
the Spirit of God, we need to be
honest with ourselves and search
our hearts to see if there is any
envy there.
** I know that these subjects have been addressed before,
but I also know that Christians are still subject to these
weaknesses and still need to be reminded and
encouraged in these things.
1. All Christians are succeptible.....whether in the
faith for a week or for thirty years.......we need
to search our hearts.
III. Gal. 6:8-10 - 8For he who sows to his flesh will of
the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will
of the Spirit reap everlasting life. 9And let us not grow
weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if
we do not lose heart. 10Therefore, as we have opportunity,
let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the
household of faith.
A. Do we get discouraged.....do we get tired.....do we
feel depressed in our struggle agains satan.........for
ourselves and for the Church?
1. This is satan at work in our hearts.
a. God doesn’t bring depression......so if it
is not from Him.....who is it from.
1.) If satan can cause Christians to
become depressed....he can just as
easily cause them to quit....to lose
their soul and possibly all the souls
that God wanted them to touch.
2.) Depression could be partly laid at
the feet of chemical inbalance...but
it also involves stress....
a.) When one places everything in
the hands of an all powerful
and all loving God....why
would this person be stressed
......but for a lack of real faith
and trust in God.
b. We get tired when we center too much on
self and not enough on Jesus.
1.) I propose that if anyone who lived
in this world, past...present....or
future....had a right to be tired...it
was Jesus Christ.
a.) Preaching to the people by
day....healing by night...in
constant prayer for His
people.
b.) The torture....... the sleepless
nightmarish night....the
insults....the challenges....
the cross......can we be so
tired when we think of
Jesus?
** And many give up because they can’t last until the
master returns......kind of reminds me of the Garden
of Gethsemane.
1. We need to be admonished....keep working in the
Kingdom....have faith and trust in God....don’t
let the setbacks defeat you.....press on with real
and true faith in Christ.
IV. I Thess. 5:4-11 - 4But you, brethren, are not in
darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief.
5You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not
of the night nor of darkness. 6Therefore let us not sleep, as
others do, but let us watch and be sober. 7For those who
sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk are drunk at
night. 8But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on
the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope
of salvation. 9For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to
obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10who died
for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live
together with Him. 11Therefore comfort each other and
edify one another, just as you also are doing.
A. It is easy to be lulled into a state of contentment
and satisfaction.
1. We speak of the impending return of Christ
2. We know of the fact that we all have only
limited days of life on this earth.
a. We speak and know.....but we live as
though none of this is reality.
3. I realize that each one of you knows this....
but be honest with yourself......did anyone
in this room feel their impending death, just
five minutes ago?
B. Because of our false sense of security....we can
be lulled to spiritual sleep.
1. Later.....everything will be done.....later.
a. We are making an assumption....a
false conclusion.....that God will allow
us to keep on living on this earth.
1.) Even if we DO continue to live...
we assume that this whole thing
will be of more pressing
importance at a future time than it
has proven to be in the present.
Romans 13:11 - 11And do this, knowing the time, that
now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our
salvation is nearer than when we first believed.
c. Paul is, here, addressing the Church
at Rome....Christians.
1.) Some of these Christians had
fallen asleep, spiritually.
a.) They had become
increasingly complacent
about their own inaction.
b.) I suppose they had a lot of
reasons for why they
weren’t doing what they
should be doing.
** But the cold hard fact was this: Some Christians
were asleep enough that Paul called them to wake
up.
1. There is but a fine difference between sleep and
a coma.
a. Christians can go into spiritual comas.
CONCLUSION:
** I left one, “let us not” out......you need to find it on your
own.
What can we conclude from all of this?
A. Even, what appears to be a negative admonition
from the scriptures.....will always be positive in
our lives if we will approach that admonition
with a positive attitude.
1. “...Let us not judge one another any more...”
2. “Let us not become conceited, provoking
one another, envying one another”.
3. “And let us not grow weary while doing
good...”
4. “Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but
let us watch and be sober”.
a. Anyone can see that these “negative”
admonitions are really helpful and
positive warnings that real dangers are
being placed in our lives, by satan.
Nobody is immune to these dangers.
A. Young or old.....new in the faith or old in the
faith.....all need the warnings that are to be found
in God’s Holy Word.
Whenever we get to the place where we feel that
ANY PASSAGES FROM GOD’S WORD ARE
“OLD HAT”....WE ARE IN TROUBLE.
A. Every time we revisit a passage or a thought from]
the scriptures, we will always see something that
we never have seen before.
1. If....on the other hand....we look at a passage
with the attitude, “I’ve heard this before!”
we will miss finding that little nuance which
we missed the first eleven times we were
exposed to it.
B. We cannot get an entertainment mentality or we
will always be looking for something newer and
more exciting.
1. We need to look at the “old things of God”
as a mine, in which we have only brought
out a few ore cars.
Positive and upbuilding things only come to those who are
looking for positive and upbuilding things.
A. And even “let us not” can be positive and
upbuilding.
