Tag Archives: wait

Sunday – December 30, 2018 Gospel of Luke – Luke 12:35-48 “The Way to Wait”

Posted on by
Reply

Sunday – December 30, 2018

Problems viewing?

Word On Worship – Sunday – December 30, 2018

Luke 12:42-43
And the Lord said, “Who then is the faithful and sensible steward, whom his master will put in charge of his servants, to give them their rations at the proper time?  43 “Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes.

I doubt that there is anything I dislike more than waiting. It may be that you can identify with me in my annoyance with waiting. How many people, during the peak travel times of Thanksgiving and Christmas, were forced to spend a day or more in the airport waiting for the weather to clear or for the airline schedules to be untangled. Think of how many “fast food” restaurants there are compared with those which cook food the slow, old-fashioned way. Credit cards appeal to us because we can buy what we want without having to wait till we have the cash.

When you think of the Bible, waiting is one of the things which men and women of faith are called upon to do. All of those named in the “hall of faith” in Hebrews 11 had to wait for the promised blessings of God. Their wait was even longer than we would like to contemplate—they were still waiting when they died. They are still waiting! If we are required to wait, then you and I had better learn how to do it right.

The problem of waiting usually comes the fact we rarely, if ever, think about the future. When we only think about today, if we get some money, we don’t think about the rent that will be due in two weeks or other bills coming due. We celebrate that we’ve got money in our pocket today, but the one thing we will not do is save any money, because we don’t think about the future. Our Lord taught that we should not be anxious about tomorrow, but He did not teach that we should ignore tomorrow! In fact, to the contrary, Jesus taught that our view of the future ought to be uppermost in our thinking about how we should live today. We should view ourselves as stewards who have been entrusted with time, money, and abilities, which we are to use for our Master’s kingdom and not hypocritically on ourselves.

As I have suggested before, Jesus is dealing with hypocrisy in Luke 12. The other side of the coin of hypocrisy is stewardship- living in a way that is consistent with our calling and the use of the resources God has provided, knowing we are accountable to Him. From the perspective of stewardship, verses 1-12 addressed the disciple’s stewardship of the gospel. The disciple must make good use of the gospel by boldly living and proclaiming it. Verses 13-34 addressed the stewardship of possessions. Our preoccupation must not be with material things, but with true “life.” We need not worry about our life, but we should use things to minister to men’s needs now, which is laying up treasure for ourselves in heaven. In verses 35 and following our Lord turns to the stewardship of time. He will instruct us as how we are to view and use the time which remains until he comes.

Sunday – January 15, 2017 Genesis 25:27-34 “Trading Your Soul For What?”

Posted on by
Reply

Sunday – January 15, 2017 – Read the Word on Worship

Sunday – January 15, 2017 Genesis 25:27-34 “Trading Your Soul For What?” from Sunrise Community Church on Vimeo.

Problems viewing?

Word On Worship – Sunday – January 15, 2017 Download / Print

Genesis 25:32
“Esau said, “Behold, I am about to die; so of what use then is the birthright to me?”

It does not take much imagination to see we live in an “instant” society. We have instant coffee, instant breakfasts, instant soup, instant pudding, and microwave popcorn. We also have cable Internet and e-mail, universal cell phone coverage, and satellite TV (as if cable TV was not fast enough). As efficient as all this can be, we have become products of an “instant society.” We want everything quicker and faster. We cannot and will not wait for desires to be met. We demand instant gratification. If there is a complication in our lives, we believe there must be an instant solution.

What is especially disturbing is that we seem to believe we have an inalienable right to be happy. Thus, no one wants to wait for anything, and for the most part no one has to. If that means cutting corners, then so be it. We are willing to sacrifice our reputation tomorrow for what we want today. Waiting is interpreted as pain. Yet, as Richard Hendrix has said, “Second only to suffering, waiting may be the greatest teacher and trainer in godliness, maturity, and genuine spirituality most of us ever encounter.”

Are you surprised to observe that the biggest “crook” in our chapter is a believer? While Esau may have been crude, he was no crook. How many Christian businessmen and employees are crooked, just as Jacob was? We call ourselves shrewd, but that is only a euphemism for unethical practices. One reason why Christians can be as crooked as Jacob is that they are so convinced of the importance of the ends they seek that they feel that any means to achieve them are justified. Many of us convince ourselves that much of the money we make is going to missions, or the church, and so we “launder” our money in Christian ministry. The goal is never more important than godliness. In fact, the Christian’s goal is godliness.

Esau also bears accountability in this mess. The sad reality is that he did not believe the word of God. Many believers are like Esau, who have traded their blessings for what amounts to a bowl of lentils. When we exchange our purity, our integrity, our family, or our relationship with God or His church, the benefit we receive is nothing more than a pile of beans! Satan is constantly tempting us to forfeit the eternal riches of our spiritual inheritance in Christ for the pleasure of immediate gratification: An illicit affair, financial compromise to get ahead, lusting after money or material things, letting loose our anger in abandonment of reason, or succumbing to depression without check. We are in constant danger of being tempted to give up something very precious in order to indulge a sudden strong desire. The pile of beans that is truly dangerous is any temptation to gratify the “feelings” of the immediate moment in a way that shows we “despise” the promises of the living God for our future.