Banishing Two Bandits Behind Bars
I've chosen this title because too many people today, including Christians, are allowing themselves to be crucified between two thieves. On one side there is the thief of vain regrets over the past. And on the other side there is the thief of fear and anxiety over the future.
And these two bandits, regret over the past and fear of the future, are robbing us of our joy and peace of mind and heart. So today, let us seek by the grace of God to put these two bandits behind bars where they belong. And let us live life to the full in the present moment. God can forgive the past. And he can take care of the future. We have only the present moment but it is the only moment we truly have.
A well-known psychiatrist points out that the majority of people who come to him for help have one thing in common. Their use of a two word phrase that he has heard, hundreds of times. He calls them the two sadness words in any language. If only! If only! The man who failed in business; the woman who never finished high school; the parents of a juvenile delinquent and hundreds more crying, if only! If only I had acted differently. If only I had not lost my temper or said that cruel word or told that foolish lie. If only I had made wise choices in life.
The trouble with saying “if only,” nothing is changed or solved. It keeps you facing in the wrong direction, backward instead of forward. It acts as a roadblock against any real progress. So instead of lamenting “if only,”we need to shift our focus away from the past.
But to give proper balance to this message, I might add that it is perfectly okay to reflect upon the precious memories from the past. “Precious memories, how they linger. How they ever flood the soul.” ( the speaker may wish to include some examples of good memories with which the audience can identify).
So it's okay occasionally to think about the good old days but let's be honest, the so-called good old days were not all good and we had many challenges to face back then as well. We can learn and be inspired from the past. But we cannot go back to those days and we must not worship the past, no way! Because when we do so we deny that God has a fresh agenda for us to follow and he plans to do even greater things in the future.
But if we are not careful the past can become the Devils territory, reminding us of previous failures and painful memories. Is it not true that most of us have hurts from the past that need to be healed? And they will heal if given time. But I must add, only under one condition. The wound needs to be kept clean from bitterness, resentment and other negative emotions.
God can heal broken hearts if we are willing to give him all the pieces. And if you forget everything else I say today, remember this. The past cannot be changed, but the past can be forgiven. And the future can be different by the grace of God.
Above all else I want this message to be one of encouragement. There is a story in the Bible that illustrates how we can gain victory over the past. I refer here to the story of Joseph in Genesis chapters 37 – 50. This story has a sad beginning but a glorious ending, bursting with hope and promise.
How would you feel if at the age of 17, you were sold into slavery by your own brothers? And later you are falsely accused and imprisoned for a crime you did not commit. And in those days, to be in prison in Egypt was like facing a life sentence with no chance of parole.
But Joseph had to learn some important lessons in the school of hard knocks. Furthermore, I believe God permitted all of this to happen because he wanted to make a man out of this proud, pampered teenager. And so for his first thirteen years down in Egypt, Joseph wore the garments of a slave and faced many hardships and heartaches.
During that dark period, it would've been easy for Joseph to ask, why me? Why should I try to be good? I do all the right things and end up in prison as a slave. But Joseph did not allow his doubts and fears to get the best of him. He did not lose faith; he rested in God's promises. And all the while, even though he did not know it, God was working behind the scene for Joseph good. Here we have a beautiful example of the Providence of God. What seemed to be a series of unspeakable tragedies turn out to be blessings in disguise.
You remember how God gave Joseph the amazing power to interpret dreams. Chapter 41 relates how Pharaoh, the ruler of Egypt had two very disturbing dreams which no one could interpret correctly. The so-called Egyptian wise- men did not have a clue what they meant. Then the chief cup-bearer, who had been a prisoner with Joseph, remembered that he and the chief baker had dreams that Joseph had interpreted very accurately.
So Joseph was called for but he made it clear to Pharaoh that he had no special power within himself to foretell the future. But giving all the glory to God his interpretations of Pharaohs dreams had the ring of truth. He predicted seven years of plenty and bumper crops, followed by seven years of terrible famine. Then he went on to give Pharaoh a survival plan for the next 14 years.
Then an amazing thing happened. We see a complete reversal of circumstances. Pharaoh recognized in Joseph the spirit of the one true God so he was elevated from prison to palace, from rags to riches. One day we see Joseph down in the dungeon and the next day he becomes Prime Minister of Egypt. He was given a new name, a lovely wife and we are told he rode the second chariot. Pharaoh had the Rolls-Royce and Joseph had the Cadillac. But even more wonderful Joseph was reunited with his family. They all came down to Egypt and their lives were spared through the seven years of famine.
Those scheming brothers, when they sold Joseph into slavery, they never dreamed that the day would come when they would stand before him as the Prime Minister of Egypt and their lives would be in his hands. They thought they had committed the perfect crime. They covered all their tracks. Their alibi had been so convincing that father Jacob was sure that Joseph was dead. But years later, the whole truth was revealed and there was no escape. The Bible says, “Be sure your sin will find you out.”
In chapters 42 – 45, we see how before Joseph revealed his true identity to his brothers they had to be tested to see if they had a change of heart. He deliberately frames them. When Judah finally admits their guilt and tearfully offers to be a slave in place of Benjamin for the sake of their father, Joseph finally knows that they are ready for forgiveness.
Then in chapter 50, in the closing scene, after the death of father Jacob, the brothers figured that Joseph would really take revenge for the way they had treated him. But there was no revenge, no getting even. They had suffered enough already. Joseph saw the big picture (Genesis 50:19 – 21). Instead of looking back with vain regret and bitterness Joseph said, “Am I in the place of God.” Revenge is God's responsibility. He can do a better job at it then anyone. And then we have the Old Testament equal of Romans 8:28. “You intended to harm me, but God meant it for good to save many lives. So don't be afraid, I will provide for your children.`He assured them and spoke kindly to them.” Joseph forgiveness was complete. He wanted his entire family to have a fresh start, a new beginning.
Over the years, I've seen some of the best families and friends torn apart, separated, because of conflict over a will or a piece of property. Even churches can become divided over non essentials. In fact I think this is Satan's favourite scheme to disrupt the work of the Lord. Pastors and church leaders spend so much time and energy putting out brush fires, preoccupied with problem solving, that there is little time left for the real work of the kingdom of God.
Don't let it happen! Life is too short! You only hurt yourself most when you refuse to be reconciled. An unforgiving spirit is like acid burning holes in body mind and spirit. So I say to you as I say to myself, right here and now let us claim victory over the past. Let go of regrets and failures and let God have his wonderful way in your heart and life.
Now for the next few minutes we are going to turn in the opposite direction as we seek to expose the folly of facing the future with fear and anxiety. Let us put these two bandits, regrets over the past and fears over the future, behind bars where they belong.
If you spend any time listening to the news these days is not hard to find reasons for discouragement. We hear reports of unemployment, marriage and family breakdown, wars in the Middle East, child-abuse and more. We cannot help but wonder what kind of a world our children and grandchildren are growing up in. And in the midst of it all I believe there is one essential that we all must have in order to survive and that is hope for the future. Hebrews 6:19, speaks of our faith in Christ. “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, sure and steadfast.”
I must confess, I don't have much hope in many of the man-made solutions that were hearing about today. Perhaps you heard the story of the man who was planning to commit suicide by jumping from the top of the Golden gate Bridge. The police tried to talk him out of it but to no avail. Finally they sent up a psychiatrist who asked, “Why do you want to end your life?” “I have problems.” “What kind of problems.” “Financial problems, health problems, marriage problems, job problems.” And so for the next hour they talked about problems. Local problems, world problems, past, present and future problems. At the end of the hour the psychiatrist and the man held hands and they both jumped off the bridge.
We may smile at that story but if there is no God, and Christ is not our living Savior. If humanity originated by chance or by accident, as some want us to believe. Then life will end by chance and we will all fade into nothingness. But this leaves us with no God and without hope. And when hope is missing, despair takes over and there's nothing left to live for. So, if you and I are only a dash– between birth and death, only a dash– between the womb and the tomb. And we don't know who we are, or where we came from, or why we're here, or where we are going. Then life has no meaning and there is little or no hope for the future. Then, if that is true the most logical thing to do is to jump off the bridge.
And so today, we need hope for the future but it must be grounded in someone greater and stronger than ourselves. We need to be reminded that our only real security for the future is not in bombs, or guns or even medicare or pension plans. But in the knowledge that the great God and Creator of the universe loves us and wants the best for us and he knows what is best far better than we do. And we can trust the one who died for us.
I mentioned that I wanted this message to be one of challenge but also a word of encouragement. This is not easy because church attendance is at an all-time low, and we have a generation of children growing up who know next to nothing about God or the Bible. There are a few churches where some very encouraging things are happening but I don't know of one church in this province that is having an easy time. I wish I could give you five easy ways to revitalize your church.
But I can bring you words of hope. The gospel is still the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes. As never before we need to return to basic Christianity. There is no substitute for prayer, heartfelt prayer. There is no substitute for the faithful preaching and teaching of the Word of God. There is no substitute for the convicting and converting power of the Holy Spirit. The message you proclaim is still the same – Christ crucified, risen and coming again. I believe it's also right to say that there are times when some of our methods of presenting and applying the Gospel must be open to new ways of reaching people for Christ. For example, our Sunday schools have really taken a beating in recent years. Some churches are having after school programs for children. If you love the Lord and love people then love will find a way to spread the old story of Jesus and his love.
Some of our churches have settled for survival mentality or maintenance ministry. They are saying, yes we will hang in there and keep the church doors open. But we can't expect anything encouraging or good to happen until conditions improve in the world around us. That is like the pessimist who when given a choice between two evils, took both. Or the man who said that he hoped the world wouldn't come to an end during his lifetime because his nerves were bad and he didn't think he could live through it.
I found myself moving into that mindset until I read the book of Acts and became aware of a wonderful truth. Our Christian faith was built for tough times. Our Christian faith grew and flourished at a time when conditions were so harsh and difficult than anything else would've died in a matter of weeks. Here and now we have a choice. We can look at all the negative factors and decide the cause is hopeless and nothing can be done. Or we can be like those early Christians. They had no beautiful buildings, media promotion or government backing. They faced a lot of persecution. All they had was a privilege of prayer and the promise of the Holy Spirit. And why they were praying they were filled with the spirit and without inter in the world upside down and right side up again. We have those same two gifts today – the privilege of prayer and the promise of the Holy Spirit. So let us go from this service today affirming that God is greater than our problems and with him all things are possible.
Suppose you are reading a very exciting mystery story. You are three quarters of the way through the book and the plot is very complicated. The hero is facing a seemingly impossible situation. The villain is in control and the situation seems hopeless. What do you do? Throw away the book and criticize the author? No, you continue reading and in the last chapter or even the last page everything works out in a beautiful way.
So in life. Perhaps some of your dreams have been destroyed by the heartless law of cause and effect. You look at some of the tragedies and mysteries of life and somehow things don't add up. You try to figure things out, such as the premature death of a friend or loved one and it doesn't make sense. You feel like giving up in despair. But God sees the total picture and says,“Hold it, I'm not finished yet! If Joseph had never been sold into slavery or thrown into prison the story could never have had such a glorious ending.
I have a remarkable book in my hands, without question, the greatest book ever written. I can turn to almost any page and I find a record of sin, sorrow or death, things I don't fully understand. But as Vance Havner has pointed out, “There's no devil on the first two pages of the Bible and no Devil on the last and two pages. God has taken care of the problem and all the answers are in the last two pages. Everything is in good shape, God is on the throne of the universe, the Devil is in the lowest pit of hell, people are where they belong and there is a new heaven and new earth.”
Right now, we are still in the midst of history. Everything seems to be against us at times. But God is not finished yet. Someday the exiled king is coming back to planet Earth. Some golden daybreak Jesus will come. Sin and evil will be destroyed, all wrongs will be righted, justice vindicated and truth prevail. And though the wrong seems so strong, God is the ruler yet. The final chapter has not yet been written and that makes all the difference.
Let us end this message with a great affirmation of faith. I invite you to repeat each phrase after me.
Jesus is Lord! If God be for us who can be against us. Nothing can separate us from the love of God . For our Lord God Almighty reigns. And he shall reign for ever and ever As King of kings and Lord of lords Let us rejoice and give God the glory. Alleluia, Amen!
