INTRO.- Short takes. What is this? I assume it’s the idea of taking a short look at some subject. It could be a short or brief look at politics. No, we don’t want to go there because it seems that there is nothing short when it comes to politics; not speeches, not conventions, not debates, etc. Ok, then how about sermons.
ILL.- The longest sermon on record was preached by Rev. Robert Marshall, minister of the Birmingham Unitarian Church, Michigan, in 1976. He preached for 60 hours and 31 minutes. The previous record holder was Robert McKee who preached for 52 hours. He said that it took him two-and-a-half years to write the 500,000-word sermon. HAVE NO FEAR. Not from this preacher.
How about short sermons? Now that’s more like it, wouldn’t you say? I believe it’s better to have people leave the church wanting more than wishing for less. But some preachers have never heard of anything like that.
What about short quotes?
- Ralph Waldo Emerson
All diseases run into one, old age.
- William Shakespeare
Love all, trust a few.
- Lewis Carroll
Everything’s got a moral, if only you can find it.
- Malcolm Forbes
The dumbest people I know are those who know it all.
- Tom Peters
If you’re not confused, you’re not paying attention.
I think it’s true that there is moral in most things in life: work, socializing, play time, etc.
ILL.- Listen to these. Some time ago I wrote these short quotes. pray much. sing praise. fear not. rejoice greatly. gripe less. bless others. commend often. give thanks. see good. stop evil. praise God. sin not. count blessings. be quiet. speak less. listen more. drink wisely. eat less. fast more. call often. care much. love strongly. hug often. be friendly. walk more. think deeply. laugh loudly. smile broadly. cleanse daily. work hard. hold children. love babies. live holy. admire goodness. speak softly. exercise often. share generously. compliment quickly. breathe deeply. be courteous. open doors. express gratitude. remember others.
PROP.- Our text gives us six short takes in scripture. 1- Be joyful 2- Pray continually 3- Give thanks 4- Build fire 5- Test everything
1. BE JOYFUL
16Be joyful always.
Phil. 4:4 "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!"
Romans 15:13 "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit."
We’ve heard people say something like, "I just want to be happy." As long as someone is happy they are fine. But I’ve also heard it said that from a Christian perspective that happiness is not our goal, holiness is. And there’s a difference between short term happiness and long term joy.
ILL.- For example, I may buy a new car that has absolutely everything I want on it: leather seats, auto, big engine, classy sporty look, etc. and for a period of time I’m absolutely delighted and filled with joy. But what happens when someone in the Walmart parking lot backs into the right front fender? (like they did my Grand Prix over a year ago) Where is our joy then? Our joy probably went out the window. At least, for a period of time.
Often, when the new wears off something the joy often wears off as well. Therefore, this must mean that we must look deeper into life in order to find true joy.
People who only find joy in material things and in doing things (such as play and pleasure, etc.) will eventually come up dry in the joy department, because those things only last for a period of time. THERE MUST BE SOMETHING GREATER, SOMETHING STRONGER, SOMETHING DEEPER THAN BRINGS US JOY.
ILL. - Max Lucado wrote: Reasons for Joy. “How’s life?” someone asks. And we who’ve been resurrected from the dead say, “Well, things could be better.” Or “Couldn’t get a parking place.” Or “My parents won’t let me move to Hawaii..."
Are you so focused on what you don’t have that you are blind to what you do? You have a ticket to heaven no thief can take, an eternal home no divorce can break. Every sin of your life has been cast to the sea. Every mistake you’ve made is nailed to the tree. You’re blood-bought and heaven-made. A child of God—forever saved. So be grateful, joyful—for isn’t it true? What you don’t have is much less that what you do.
So what is Lucado saying? REJOICE, BECAUSE GREAT IS YOUR REWARD IN HEAVEN and it’s far better than anything in this life!
2. PRAY CONTINUALLY
17Pray continually.
Philippians 4:6 "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God."
ILL.- A preacher said: When my daughter was about three I took her to bed and asked what she would like to pray about. Promptly she answered: "onions." We prayed about onions and the next morning I asked why she wanted to pray about onions. "Because you said in your sermon that we should pray for things we don’t like."
I think we should pray about things that we don’t like or things that disturb us. In fact, we should pray about everything!
ILL.- One time a preacher asked a little boy in his church if he prayed every day. The boy replied, "No, I don’t pray every day because some days I don’t want anything."
Is that really the way some people pray? It’s true that some people may only pray to God when they want something, otherwise, prayer is not important to them and that’s because they have no relationship to God as their heavenly Father.
ILL.- Four year old Nancy’s brother, Charles, had been mean to her. One night while praying Nancy asked God to help Charles become a better and stop being mean to her. She finished her prayer but then suddenly added a PS to her prayer, "And by the way, God, I’ve mentioned this to you several times before."
Do we do this? Yes, and it’s not a bad thing to do. Why? Because God has told us to ask of Him and keep on asking. But obviously, in our asking we should never be demanding like God is some kind of errand boy or bell hop to do our bidding.
ILL.- A mother paddled her little four year old daughter for something naughty she’d done. That evening the little girl prayed, "Dear Lord, please help me to understand my mother. Amen." A prayer for understanding is a good thing. James 1:5 "If anyone lacks wisdom let him ask of God..."
QUOTES
- What cannot be told to human ears can be poured into God’s sympathetic ear. Amen. (This is why I love private prayer time.)
- Prayer is not an easy way of getting what we want, but the only way of becoming what God wants us to be. (prayer is a part of the surrendered life)
- A short prayer will reach the throne - if you don’t live too far away.
- He who stands best kneels the most.
- Prayer does not need proof. It needs practice.
- If America is ever to get on its feet, the church will have to get on its knees. AMEN!
- When it is hardest to pray, we should pray the hardest.
Let me encourage you to pray more than you ever have in your life! Be quick to pray, ask the Lord about anything/for anything, commune with Him, talk to Him all the time, walk with Him as Enoch of old did.
3. GIVE THANKS
18Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
ILL. - A Sunday School teacher asked her class what they were thankful for. One little boy said, “My glasses.”
When asked why he was thankful for his glasses when most little boys were bitter about wearing them, he said, “Because they keep the boys from fighting me and the girls from kissing me.”
Ever since I was small I never liked wearing glasses but I guess that boy had the right idea. Many times we experience things in life that we don’t like, however, God wants us to see the positive in everything and give Him thanks. And generally, if we look long enough and think hard enough we will find something for which to be thankful.
ILL.- Corrie ten Boom in The Hiding Place relates an incident that taught her always to be thankful. She and her sister, Betsy, had just been transferred to the worst German prison camp they had seen yet, Ravensbruck. On entering the barracks, they found them extremely overcrowded and flea-infested.
That morning, their Scripture reading in 1 Thessalonians had reminded them to rejoice always, pray constantly, and give thanks in all circumstances. Betsy told Corrie to stop and thank the Lord for every detail of their new living quarters.
Corrie at first flatly refused to give thanks for the fleas, but Betsy persisted, and Corrie finally succumbed to her pleadings. During the months spent at the camp, they were surprised to find how openly they could hold Bible study and prayer meetings without guard interference.
It was not until several months later that they learned the reason the guards would not enter the barracks was because of the fleas.
What is there in your life that may appear negative and yet there is something for which you can give thanks?
ILL.- Dr. David Soper, in God Is Inescapable, suggests that basically the difference between a prison and a monastery is just the difference between griping and gratitude.
Imprisoned criminals spend every waking moment griping; self-imprisoned saints spend every waking moment offering thanks.
Dr. Soper says that when a criminal becomes a saint, a prison may become a monastery; when a saint gives up gratitude, a monastery may become a prison.
Give thanks in all circumstances. Work hard at giving thanks.
Whisper prayers of praise throughout the day for every blessing from God. "Thank you, Lord, for my night’s rest. Thank you for the good food that you give me daily. Thank you for a home, a bed, a car, food to eat, etc.
4. BUILD FIRE
19Do not put out the Spirit’s fire; 20do not treat prophecies with contempt.
Rom. 12:11 "Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. "
We need to be fired up for the Lord instead of putting out the Spirit’s fire.
ILL.- A husband and wife were going home after church one Sunday and the wife commented, "The preacher sure had a poor sermon today. It seems to me he should put more fire into his sermon." The husband, "No, I think he should have put more of his sermon into the fire."
I think both preachers and church members can put out the Spirit’s fire. Preachers can put out the Spirit’s fire by not doing the Lord’s work or by doing it poorly. And perhaps by not putting enough fire into their sermons.
Church members can put out the Spirit’s fire by not listening to the Word of God whether at home or in church.
ILL.- It was at the close of a Lord’s Day, and Dr. Harry A. Ironside had been busy in the Lord’s business. Five times had he spoken. On the way home—how human it all was—a simple question of Mrs. Ironside irritated him somewhat and it showed.
The Holy Spirit quickly convicted this man of God. Contritely, he asked his wife’s forgiveness with, “Forgive me. I am quite tired. Remember, I have preached five times today.” And then came the answer: “Yes, dear, I know; but remember, I have had to listen to you five times today!”
Just because you have to listen to me every Sunday and perhaps twice on Sunday, please don’t treat God’s message with contempt. If we do this we will put out the Spirit’s fire. Instead of putting out the fire of God’s Spirit by bad behavior, poor listening, and disobedient living, we must build fire within ourselves. WE MUST GET FIRED UP FOR THE LORD AND HIS CHURCH!
ILL.- When I started to jog for my health, at first I wasn’t too excited about it. But the more I did it, the better I felt and the more I wanted to do it. Before I realized it I was running 6 days a week and finally got to where I could run 22 miles every other Saturday morning and instead of wearing me out, it wound me up!
The same principle applies to the things of God and His Spirit who lives within us. Since we know that God is real deal, the Creator and our heavenly Father, then the more we put into His work, His cause, and His church we know that the fire will grow. That’s the way God works.
5. TEST EVERYTHING
21Test everything. Hold on to the good. 22Avoid every kind of evil.
ILL.- The longest flight made by a homing pigeon was the 7,200 miles that one flew in 1931 from Arras, France, to its home in Saigon, Vietnam. To demonstrate that homers are not guided by landmarks, the bird was taken to France in a covered cage aboard a ship that crossed the South China Sea, the Indian Ocean, the Red Sea and the Mediterranean. The pigeon—straight as an arrow and over “unfamiliar” land—returned in just 24 days.
Isn’t that amazing? What do you call that? It’s the work of Almighty God! The homing pigeon has a built-in (God built) ability to find its way home. While this is both amazing and good, we humans don’t have this ability. We need a map or a GPS (Global Positioning System) to help us find where we are going and how to get home, and especially, if we’re going to far away places where we’ve never been before. And some of us can’t even find where we’re going with a map or GPS. We still get mixed up and confused.
Likewise, in life and in the spiritual realm we don’t have a built-in guidance system. We need help. We need to be taught and trained. Our moms and dads must teach us the difference between right and wrong early on in life. That’s why they would say, "no, no" or perhaps "yes, that’s ok," etc. Our moms and dads had to train us in regard to life and right living.
And of course, if we don’t have that early training by good parents and perhaps godly parents, then we’ll be in trouble. And we’ve all seen children like that. They seem to have trouble continually in life because they haven’t been trained to choose what is right or what is best in life.
Now back to the GPS though. Have you ever used a GPS?
ILL.- The last of August Elaine and I went to Branson, MO, for our anniversary. I borrowed a Garmin GPS from Bill and Dorothy Griffin since we were thinking about getting one. I actually knew the way to Branson via 63 north, then 62 at Hardy, and then you catch 65 north at Harrison, AR, and it takes right to Branson, MO.
Before we left Jonesboro, however, we turned on the GPS and you can probably guess what happened. By the time we passed Hardy, AR, (or perhaps before) that GPS kept saying, "Recalculating, recalculating." Ever so often it kept trying to lead me into MO and I guess to Highway 60. So every little bit it would say, "recalculating, recalculating," when I didn’t turn when it wanted me to.
Brothers and sisters, we have a divine GPS system and it’s called the Word of God. And every time we read the Word of God or hear the Word of God in its truth, we should do some "recalculating."
The Word of God is eternal truth. It doesn’t have to recalculate according to OUR thinking, but we should recalculate our lives according to its direction and truth! So when we hear it or hear a truth in scripture that grabs our hearts then we should "recalculate" and do some changing.
Acts 17:11 "Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true."
We test everything in life up against the Word of God. We recalculate by holding to the good and avoiding all evil.
CONCLUSION---------------------
Short takes in scripture. Short admonitions but powerful.
If it’s from God it doesn’t have to be long to learn from it and be motivated by it. So in the future let’s take note of the words and phrases in God’s Word and learn from them.
