Category: sermon-archive

GETTING RID OF FOREIGN GODS

Joshua 24:14-24 CSB

Therefore, fear the Lord and worship him in sincerity and truth. Get rid of the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and worship the Lord. 15 But if it doesn’t please you to worship the Lord, choose for yourselves today: Which will you worship—the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living? As for me and my family, we will worship the Lord.” 16 The people replied, “We will certainly not abandon the Lord to worship other gods! 17 For the Lord our God brought us and our ancestors out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery, and performed these great signs before our eyes. He also protected us all along the way we went and among all the peoples whose lands we traveled through. 18 The Lord drove out before us all the peoples, including the Amorites who lived in the land. We too will worship the Lord, because he is our God.” 19 But Joshua told the people, “You will not be able to worship the Lord, because he is a holy God. He is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions and sins. 20 If you abandon the Lord and worship foreign gods, he will turn against you, harm you, and completely destroy you, after he has been good to you.” 21 “No!” the people answered Joshua. “We will worship the Lord.” 22 Joshua then told the people, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you yourselves have chosen to worship the Lord.” “We are witnesses,” they said. 23 “Then get rid of the foreign gods that are among you and turn your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel.” 24 So the people said to Joshua, “We will worship the Lord our God and obey him.”

Over the past few weeks, we have been looking at some of the good habits of the victorious Christian. We can find those habits described in the New Testament – like the habit of letting God renew your mind, or passing on your faith. But there are also some good habits described in the Old Testament – like returning to the LORD.

Today’s habit is described in the Old Testament book of Joshua. Joshua 24 records a crucial moment in the history of the Jewish people. They had entered into the promised land, and had settled there. But their fighting was not over. No, Joshua told his people that they had a choice to make – and a choice to keep on making.

Like those Israelites, you and I have the same choice to make. We can delude ourselves into thinking that idolatry is an ancient temptation, and that we are beyond it. Nothing could be further from the truth. If anything, we are living in a generation profoundly polytheistic. You only have to look at the news headlines and social media posts to see that people are following numerous paths, and all those paths compete for our attention and allegiance. The gods of this generation may not overtly name themselves, or demand sacrifices or ritual ceremonies, but those gods are very much alive. They are reflected in the number of their adherents.

It is precisely for that reason that this text can speak to us this morning. We face the same choice that these Old Testament Israelites faced. We would do well to look at the choice they had to make, and see what choice they made, and why it was important that they make it. The habit they needed to develop is the habit of getting rid of foreign Gods and staying true to the one true God.

Joshua encouraged his people to get rid of all the foreign gods and serve the Lord exclusively (14-15).

Moses had instructed the Israelites not to “worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God” (Exodus 34:14 NIV). He told them to “Fear the Lord your God, serve him only and take your oaths in his name” (Deuteronomy 6:13 NIV). A few chapters later, Moses repeated himself, saying “Fear the Lord your God and serve him. Hold fast to him and take your oaths in his name. He is the one you praise; he is your God” (Deuteronomy 10:20-21a NIV).

Jesus had the very same attitude. Some people today talk about Jesus as if he would accept anybody’s religion as long as they were devout. But the Jesus we read about in the New Testament quotes Moses when he says “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only” (Matthew 4:10 NIV).

Joshua encouraged his people to serve the LORD exclusively, but it was not a simple choice for them to make. Opposition gods are everywhere. Here is a short list of Egyptian gods and goddesses.

• AMUN-RA: the King of gods

• MUT: the Mother Goddess

• OSIRIS: The King of the Living

• ANUBIS: Protector of the Dead 

• RA: God of the Sun and Radiance

• HORUS: God of Vengeance

• THOTH: God of Knowledge and Wisdom

• HATHOR: Goddess of love and beauty 

These are just a few of the major deities of the Egyptian pantheon. These gods and goddesses had been part of everyday life for the Israelites when they were slaves. They had been born into a culture that venerated these multiple gods.

Joshua’s instruction for his people was to “Get rid of the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt” (14). Now, why did he have to say that? I mean, didn’t the Israelites leave Egypt? Didn’t they cross the Red Sea on dry land? Didn’t they wander in the open country for forty years, and then cross the Jordan into the promised land? Yes, they left Egypt. But the problem with getting out of Egypt is that Egypt does not automatically leave you.

The Israelites had lived in Egypt for over four centuries. They had learned to walk like an Egyptian, talk like an Egyptian, think like an Egyptian, worship like an Egyptian. They needed to present their bodies to God as living sacrifices and allow God to transform them by renewing their minds. But as long as they held on to those Egyptian gods and goddesses, their worship of the one true God would be unacceptable.

It is one thing to destroy an idol. You can do that quite easily. It is another thing to stop trusting in the god that inhabits that idol. You see, if you don’t dump the god or goddess that that idol represents, you are liable to get sentimental and remake the idol. All it takes is a bit of wood or stone. In my travels, I’ve seen the poor make idols out of cement, or use a plastic baby doll. So Joshua challenges his people to get rid of – not just the idols, but the foreign gods.

Now, let’s look at the “gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living” (15). Some of the Israelites were probably not tempted to worship the gods associated with their slavery in Egypt. But they would be tempted to worship the shiny new gods of the land of Canaan.

Here are some of the gods and goddesses who opposed him in the promised land.

• Ashtoreth (Canaanites)

• Baal (Canaanites)

• Baal Peor (Moabites)

• Baal Zebub (Philistines)

• Chemosh (Moabites)

• Dagon (Philistines)

• Milcom (Ammonites)

• Molech (Ammonites)

Joshua encouraged his people to get rid of all the foreign gods – old and new – and serve the Lord exclusively

The Israelites know that only the Lord has shown himself powerful enough to save them (16-18).

Notice how the Israelites respond to Joshua’s challenge. They said “We will certainly not abandon the Lord to worship other gods!” (16). They knew that to follow any of the other gods would be to abandon the one true God. He is owed exclusive allegiance.

But they go further than that. They know that following God exclusively is necessary because he has shown himself powerful enough to save them.

First, he miraculously saved them from slavery in Egypt. They said “ the Lord our God brought us and our ancestors out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery” (17).

Second, he showed his power by undeniable miracles while leading them.

Third, he miraculously protected them through the entire generation of wandering and the next generation of conquest.

Fourth, he drove out before them “all the peoples, including the Amorites who lived in the land” (18).

So, the Israelites were convinced that their God alone was worthy of worship and was powerful enough to eliminate the need for any “plan b.” They didn’t need any other gods to fall back on.

They had made an important declaration. Now it was Joshua’s turn to warn them that following the one true God in a polytheistic environment was not going to be easy.

Joshua reminds the Israelites that serving the Lord requires firm commitment (19-22).

Joshua warned them that they “will not be able to worship the Lord, because he is a holy God. He is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions and sins” (19).

If you transgressed under the other gods, there were ceremonies and rituals and sacrifices that would automatically set things right. You could pay a priest or shaman and they would get you forgiveness. But Joshua warns the Israelites that they have to dump that whole process because the true God is jealous and would not forgive someone who stayed connected to those other gods.

Not only would such a person not be forgiven, he would invoke the wrath of God. God would harm him – even destroy him (20). Serving the Lord requires firm commitment. He will not tolerate hypocrisy.

Joshua and the Israelites agree to get rid of all their foreign gods (23-24).

So, Joshua tells the Israelites to “get rid of the foreign gods that are among you and turn your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel” (23). They agreed to do so. They said “We will worship the Lord our God and obey him” (24).

That was not the end of the story. Idolatry continued to plague the Israelites throughout their history – eventually leading to their exile and captivity among the Gentile nations.

What I see in today’s text is a general principle from Scripture which is just as true today as it always has been. God’s people will always be tempted to add other gods to our pantheon. We will always be tempted to take on some priority other than the gospel of Jesus Christ, and we need to habitually fight that temptation.

Our advertisements reveal that we are enamored with the pagan god SELF. We are commanded to take care of SELF, to treat SELF well because SELF deserves a break, to respect SELF, to pamper SELF, to make SELF first priority.

Meanwhile, our Lord told us that if we want come after him, we will have to deny SELF, and take up our cross, and follow him (Matthew 16:24).

The apostle Paul taught that we should be bearing the weaknesses of those without strength, not concentrating on how to please SELF (Romans 15:1).

James taught that we should be humbling SELF in the presence of the Lord (James 4:10).

Peter taught that we should submit SELF to human authorities because it is God’s will (1 Peter 2:13-15).

When our LORD left us to return to heaven, he gave us one great commission – to make disciples for him. There are a whole lot of others things that will compete for our time and energy, but we need to seek first his kingdom and righteousness. When something else jockeys for the top position, we need to put that god back in its place, because he told us “Do not have other gods besides me” (Exodus 20:3 CSB).

Folks, we have to dump those idols. We have to keep dumping, demolishing, burning, and getting rid of those gods. If we want to live in victory today, and be a part of his coming kingdom, we have to remove every commitment that challenges our Lord’s primacy.

RENEWING YOUR MIND

Romans 12:1-8 CSB

Therefore, brothers and sisters, in view of the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your true worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God. 3 For by the grace given to me, I tell everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he should think. Instead, think sensibly, as God has distributed a measure of faith to each one. 4 Now as we have many parts in one body, and all the parts do not have the same function, 5 in the same way we who are many are one body in Christ and individually members of one another. 6 According to the grace given to us, we have different gifts: If prophecy, use it according to the proportion of one’s faith; 7 if service, use it in service; if teaching, in teaching; 8 if exhorting, in exhortation; giving, with generosity; leading, with diligence; showing mercy, with cheerfulness.

All the scriptures we are looking at this month highlight habits that we should have – things that we should keep doing as Christians. As a theme verse for the series, I noted Paul’s instruction for the Philippians to keep on doing all that they have learned from him (Philippians 4:9). My point is that the Christian life has a beginning, but we cannot say that now that we are converted, we can just stop serving God and rest on our accomplishment. The Christian life is a life – it is a permanent path that we are walking on (Psalm 1). It is a life that we are passing on to our relatives and friends (2 Timothy 1). It is returning to the Lord – over and over again – so that we always stay with him (Deuteronomy 4).

But I have a confession to make. The title I chose for today’s message is misleading, because…

We cannot renew our minds (2).

Let’s take another look at verse 2 so I can explain what I am talking about.

• Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

There are two options described by Paul for the Roman Christians. They can either be conformed to this age, or they can be transformed by the renewing of their mind. But did you notice that both of those options are passive?

An action that is passive is one in which the subject is being acted upon by someone or something else. Paul told the Romans not to be conformed to this age. Being conformed means that all the Romans had to do was passively allow the age in which they lived to conform them to its standards.

Likewise, the Romans could passively choose to be transformed by the renewing of their mind. But they could not actively renew their mind. They had to submit to God’s will, and let him renew their mind. In fact, if they did not submit to God, they could not even “discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.” So, the Romans could not renew their own minds. Neither can we.

But this passage does teach us how we can cooperate with God and let Him renew our minds.

What we can do is present our bodies to God (1).

Let’s take a closer look at verse 1.

• Therefore, brothers and sisters, in view of the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your true worship.

First, let’s take a look at that first word: “Therefore.” What is the “Therefore” there for? It draws our attention to everything that Paul had said previously in the book of Romans.

In Romans 1, we learn that the gospel is the power of God which can save everyone – Jew or Gentile. But the Gentiles rejected that gospel and chose idolatry instead.

In Romans 2, we learn that the Jews also rejected that gospel and chose an outward religion instead of the inward circumcision of the heart.

In Romans 3, we learn that everyone is a sinner, but that anyone can be saved by faith in Jesus Christ as the world’s redeemer.

In Romans 4, we learn that Abraham is an example of this kind of faith.
In Romans 5, we learn that Adam’s sin resulted the death penalty to everyone, but that Christ’s obedience will result in a resurrection unto permanent life for those reconciled through his death.

In Romans 6, we learn that we can now present our current mortal bodies not as slaves to sin, but as slaves to God. We also learn that even though the wages of sin is death, the gift of God is permanent life.

In Romans 7, we learn that the flesh and the law cause us to struggle with sin in this life.

In Romans 8, we learn that the Holy Spirit can help us overcome those struggles, and that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ.

In Romans 9-11, we learn that not all natural descendants of Israel are the true Israel. Instead God’s people are those who put their faith in Christ. We learn that “A partial hardening has come upon Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in” (Romans 11:25).

So, everyone – Jew and Gentile alike – depends on something for their redemption. Paul calls that something “the mercies of God.” We cannot transform ourselves from sinners to saints. God has to do that. All we can do is present our bodies to him as a living sacrifice. This is what true worship does. It says “God, I have faith in you to make me become something holy and pleasing in your sight. I cannot renew my mind, but you can. I cannot change my habits, but you can. I cannot even figure out for myself what you want, but you can reveal it to me.”

Now, why would God want to do that for us? The answer is “the mercies of God.” He is merciful. He looks down on his poor, ignorant, dependent children and chooses to treat us with his mercy. God’s ultimate act of mercy will be seen when we are raised to permanent life when Jesus comes again. But we don’t have to wait until the second coming to show the world that we are recipients of his mercy today. We can cooperate with God and let Him renew our minds.

We can also think sensibly about our function in Christ’s body (3-8).

Verse 3 encourages us to “think sensibly, as God has distributed a measure of faith to each one.”

God’s mercy has endowed each of us with a measure of faith, and a set of spiritual gifts by which we display that faith. The whole body of Christ functions properly when all the gifts are displayed.

But the body of Christ can become dysfunctional when certain gifts are regarded as more important that the other gifts.

For example, this passage lists four gifts that are traditionally understood as defining church leadership: prophecy (6), teaching (7), exhortation and leading (8). What we have done traditionally in our churches is that we have propped up these gifts by requiring a formal ordination process and giving people titles that reflect that process.

Now, I believe in properly trained church leaders. As a missionary, I trained people overseas to become church leaders. I teach seminars online to train people as church leaders now. I am currently an ordained minister, and a member of the Eastern North Carolina Conference ministerial committee which evaluates candidates for ordination. But I also believe that Paul’s warning here applies to us.

There is no function in the body of Christ which is more important, or more essential than any other function. When we start thinking of our gifts more highly than we think of others, we are liable to get proud. Pride goes before a fall.

Also, the miracle of the body is that it has many parts, and all of them are designed to function in tandem with all the others. Paul implied this kind of relationship when he said “we who are many are one body in Christ” (5a).

But Paul went a little further. He said that all of as individuals are members of one another (5b). That’s why we can’t get the big head and ignore other members as less important than us. Each of us has a gift that the other members of the body needs. And they have gifts that we need.

That’s why there are so many reciprocal commands in scripture. These are the commands that can only be obeyed in conjunction with other believers.

• Be devoted to one another
• Give preference to one another
• Be of the same mind toward one another
• Love one another
• Build one another up
• Accept one another
• Greet one another

[And that’s just the ones appearing in Romans!]

Also, the imagery of the body shows us that you cannot practice your gifts apart from others. A severed limb no longer functions at all.

Paul encourages the Romans to learn what their function is, and to use that set of spiritual gifts “according to the proportion of one’s faith” (6b). They should not all try to be like preacher so-and-so, or deacon what’s-his-name.

It is a matter of trusting God, really. It is trusting that God had a purpose for putting me in the congregation – a role for me in the community that he did not design for anyone else.

It is also freeing to know that my relationship to Jesus is not tied to the same result that someone else gets in her ministry. As hard as I try, I might not have the same effect on others that she does. But if I am thinking sensibly, I’ll realize that I am not supposed to evaluate myself based on her achievements.

So, I want to conclude by saying that there is some things we can do to present our bodies as living sacrifices, and if we do so in an attitude of trust, God will renew our minds regularly. Mind renewal is passive. We cannot do it ourselves. But body presentation is active.

Become living sacrifices for God (1)

This is not an exhaustive list, but it is a good start.

• First, decide where God wants our feet to go, and sacrifice all other destinations. There are places we can go that we shouldn’t go. We are aiming for the permanent path. That means there are places we cannot stand – directions we cannot walk.

• Second, decide to bend our knees. Be always in an attitude of prayer and humble submission to our king. Someday every knee will bow. Today our knees should bow.

• Third, decide to surrender our appetite and desires to the kingdom. Seek first the Lord and his righteousness.

• Fourth, decide to use all your strength for the Lord, and stay strong not for yourself, but so you can be strong for him.

• Fifth, put God’s word in your brain. Memorize scripture, and meditate on it. Hide the word in your heart so that you do not sin against him.

As I said, it is a short list. But as we focus on presenting ourselves as living sacrifices to God, we set him free to renew our minds day by day. Before long, we will begin to discern what God wants us to do, and what he wants us to say. We will understand how he wants us to serve him and one another in his body.

“God, we have faith in you to make us become something holy and pleasing in your sight. We cannot renew our minds, but you can. We cannot change our habits, but you can. We cannot even figure out for ourselves what you want, but you can reveal it to us. We surrender to your mercies. Renew our minds. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”

PASSING ON YOUR FAITH

2 Timothy 1:3-7 CSB

3 I thank God, whom I serve with a clear conscience as my ancestors did, when I constantly remember you in my prayers night and day. 4 Remembering your tears, I long to see you so that I may be filled with joy. 5 I recall your sincere faith that first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and now, I am convinced, is in you also. 6 Therefore, I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is in you through the laying on of my hands. 7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but one of power, love, and sound judgment.

Today’s sermon is doing double duty. It is part of the series on the habits of the victorious. But it is also appropriate as we celebrate Mother’s Day today. Paul tells Timothy that when he thinks about Timothy’s faith commitment, he remembers seeing that same spark of faith in the lives of two women in his life – his grandmother Lois and his mother Eunice.

Timothy’s faith was a direct result of the loving discipleship of these two women. They had decided to be obedient to Jesus’ great commission to disciple all nations, and they decided to start in their own family.

Today I want to talk about the habit of passing on your faith to those around you. We sometimes call that evangelism. That’s not a bad word because the word evangelism is related to the word gospel. The faith that we pass on is good news. It is a particular good news that Jesus has paid the price for our sins, and the price of admission to his future kingdom that is coming down from the sky.

But today I want to talk about passing on our faith in a different sense. I suppose it is a more general sense. I am talking about transferring all that it means for us to be Christians to others around us who are not yet Christian. It is more than a particular doctrine or set of doctrines. It is multiplying your life.

Jesus was a role model for this type of discipleship. He had lots of followers, and he taught them all. But he opened his life to the twelve in a very special sense. He did life with them. And it made a difference in their lives. Early in the book of Acts we learn that when the crowds “saw the boldness of Peter and John, and discovered that they were uneducated and ordinary men, they were amazed and recognized these men had been with Jesus” (Acts 4:13 NET).

Our families are a wonderful place for us to do discipleship. This was God’s intention from the very beginning. He put us in families so that we could teach the most important lessons to those who are the most important to us. He designed families to be microcosms of his kingdom.

Since that is the case, it is only natural for parents and grandparents who have themselves entered into the dominion of Christ’s kingdom – to pass on their citizenship to their children and grandchildren. It does not always happen. But it can happen. It happened in the case of Lois. She passed on her faith to Eunice. It happened in the case of Eunice. She passed on her faith to Timothy.

And because of the obedience of these two mothers, many more came into the kingdom by means of the Timothy’s work. Paul had told Timothy to “entrust what you heard me say in the presence of many others as witnesses to faithful people who will be competent to teach others as well” (2 Timothy 2:2 NET). So the investment of these two mothers would lead to discipling going on well beyond the limits of their own lives and that of Timothy. Timothy was a member of Paul’s missionary team. That means that these two women made a missionary impact on the world even if they didn’t go on the field. Who know how many thousands of people were won to faith because of the commitment of these two women?

This morning I want to share some advice with you if you want to pass on your faith to the others around you. I am basing this advice on today’s scripture text.

Make sure your faith is sincere (5).

Paul called Timothy’s faith sincere in verse 5. The Greek word he used is ἀνυπόκριτος, which means unhypocritical. Jesus had warned his disciples not to do like the hypocrites do.

When the hypocrites gave to the poor, they sounded trumpets to draw attention to their generosity. If they gave just to be applauded by others, that was their reward.

When the hypocrites prayed, they stood up in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets so that everybody could see them. If they were just praying to be seen praying, that would be their reward. Their prayers would accomplish public appreciation, but they would not be praying to God.

There were some who decided to take some of their money and dedicate it to God. But what they were actually doing is setting that money aside temporarily so that they would not have to use it in taking care of their parents. Jesus called them hypocrites. They were using religion as an excuse not to honor their parents. Family is a sphere in which we can learn how to have a sincere faith. Our children are watching to see how much we respect and care for our parents.

Jesus condemned the scribes and Pharisees for their use of religion to keep others from being saved even while they themselves failed to enter the kingdom. They did their religious acts to impress people, but their piety was not sincere. They were hypocrites.

When Jesus was teaching about his second coming, he told a story about a master who put his servant in charge of his household while he was away. But the servant started abusing the other servants, and spent all his time eating and getting drunk. He said the master will come on a day that the servant would not expect, and that the master “will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 24:51 CSB). Hell is for hypocrites, folks.

But the passage is even more relevant to today’s topic. Remember that the master had put the servant in charge of his household. We need to be aware – parents and grandparents – that Jesus has put us in charge of our households. He has given us a commission to lead our families, providing for all they need. We had better be careful that we do not neglect their spiritual needs. It is a matter of condemnation and shame fathers and mothers neglect their children. How much more so those who neglect to show their children Christ. There is no substitute for that. We can give all that we have, but if we do not give our children Christ, we have failed them, and him.

Make sure your faith is evident (4-5).

Paul said he was convinced that Timothy had been passed on a legacy of genuine faith. He “I recall your sincere faith that first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and now, I am convinced, is in you also” (5). He could probably see a physical resemblance between these two women and Timothy. But he could also see a spiritual resemblance.

The saying goes that the apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree. We say that when we notice a character trait or an element of the personality of a parent showing up in the child. I used to love it when my young daughters said something or did something that imitated me or Penny. I loved it even more when they themselves became parents, and I saw them parenting like we did.

Of course, the bad characteristics of our personalities show up as well. Our kids learn from us, even when we don’t want them to. Parenting is not a job that you can punch out of. When I worked at the factory and other such places, I could punch out at lunch time. Then I could do what I wanted to do. I was not responsible to my boss then. But I could never punch out of being a parent. My kids were watching every waking moment. Every aspect of our lives is evident.

I was reminded of this when our oldest daughter first went away to Bible College. We discovered that she was very good at theology. Penny and I had invested many hours of our lives every day training Bible college students, but our kids did not go to that college. So, why was Liz so good at theology? Well, what else would we talk about at the dinner table? Our passion was evident, and our kids caught it.

Paul mentioned that Timothy’s faith was evident in his emotions and desires. He said he remembered Timothy’s tears (4). He knew what Timothy was passionate about because it was evident in his life.

Doctor Dorothy Law Nolte wrote a poem called “Children Learn What They Live.” It’s a good poem. Look it up and read it. It is a reminder of our obligations as parents. It is also a reminder that we are shaping the lives of those in our households. Yes, they’re watching their teachers and they’re watching their TVs. But that does not stop them from watching us.

Jesus told his followers that we are the light of the world. He said a city set on a hill cannot be hidden. A faith that is evident is a faith that is more likely to be passed on to the next generation – and the next.

Make sure your faith is getting stronger (6-7).

Paul was confident that Timothy’s faith was genuine, but it still needed to grow – to develop – to mature. That is why he told Timothy to “rekindle the gift of God that is in you through the laying on of my hands” (6).

Notice that Paul is not just talking about some general “laying on of hands.” He said “the laying on of my hands.” Paul had personally laid his hands on Timothy and prayed with him as he committed his life to the ministry of missionary work. He had personally watched as the Holy Spirit empowered Timothy by giving him the spiritual gifts he needed to plant and develop new churches.

Now – years later – Paul tells Timothy to “rekindle the gift.” You use kindle to start a fire. But sometimes the fire gets weak and needs to be rekindled or else it is in danger of going out.

The Greek word that Paul uses is very revealing. It is ἀναζωπυρέω. Let me break it down for you:

• ἀνα means “new”
• ζω means “life”
• πυρ means “fire”

To rekindle is to put new life back into the fire. To rekindle the gift means to make God’s power even stronger and more evident in your life.

Paul is telling Timothy, “Son, you had a faith when you were young. You got that faith from watching your mother and grandmother. That faith worked well when you were young. But you are playing with the big boys now. You need a mature faith that is strong enough to overcome your fears.”

That’s why Paul goes on to say that “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but one of power, love, and sound judgment” (7). God has started the fire by empowering you with his Holy Spirit. Now, don’t allow the fear of your flesh put out the fire of the Spirit. Rekindle that fire.

When it comes to passing on our faith, this act of rekindling is crucial. You see, to pass on our faith in Christ, we need a faith that is stronger than our adult problems. We cannot just survive on the faith we had when we were younger. It was real – it was sincere – but as we grow older and seek to be used by God to accomplish more things for him – we will have to put new life into the fire.

You see, there are three ways that a mature Christian life is going to test our faith.

• Fear is going to challenge our ability to stay true to Christ. So Paul reminds Timothy that God has already given him a spirit of power.
• Fear is going to challenge the authenticity of our love for God and others. So Paul reminds Timothy that God has already given him a spirit of love.
• Fear is going to challenge the wisdom of our choices. So Paul reminds Timothy that God has already given him a spirit of sound judgment.

The faith that Timothy needed now had to be stronger than ever because his commitment was going to be challenged like never before.

Jesus wants us to pass on our faith to our children, grandchildren, our neighbors and friends. But in order to do that, we need a sincere faith, an evident faith, and a faith that is stronger than ever before.

LORD, help us to rekindle our faith so that we can pass it on.

RETURNING TO THE LORD

Deuteronomy 4:25-31 CSB

• 25 “When you have children and grandchildren and have been in the land a long time, and if you act corruptly, make an idol in the form of anything, and do what is evil in the sight of the Lord your God, angering him, 26 I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you today that you will quickly perish from the land you are about to cross the Jordan to possess. You will not live long there, but you will certainly be destroyed. 27 The Lord will scatter you among the peoples, and you will be reduced to a few survivors among the nations where the Lord your God will drive you. 28 There you will worship man-made gods of wood and stone, which cannot see, hear, eat, or smell. 29 But from there, you will search for the Lord your God, and you will find him when you seek him with all your heart and all your soul. 30 When you are in distress and all these things have happened to you, in the future you will return to the Lord your God and obey him. 31 He will not leave you, destroy you, or forget the covenant with your ancestors that he swore to them by oath, because the Lord your God is a compassionate God.

The Christian life begins at a point in time and history that we call conversion. At the moment of our conversion, a new life begins. That new life is evidenced by two changes. One change is called repentance. Repentance is turning from our former life of sin to God’s righteousness. The other change is faith. Faith is believing in Christ and trusting in him.

At no point in the Christian life is it okay for us to stop having faith. Faith is an expected constant. We should develop the habit of believing and trusting Jesus in everything.

Repentance is also something that we cannot do just once. The Christian life should be one of constant repentance. We should keep examining our lives, attitudes and motives, and be willing to change whenever we find the need. Repentance is one choice which will lead to many choices. It is the turning of our ships in the direction of our intended destination, and it will also require many other smaller course corrections as the journey progresses.

From the day we surrender our lives to Christ, we need to keep practicing repentance. The series I am beginning today is going to focus on the kinds of things we have to keep working at. They are the habits of the victorious Christian.

Paul told the Philippians to keep on doing all they had learned from him (Philippians 4:9). There are some things we cannot just acknowledge. We have to put them into practice. We have to turn them into habits.

Today’s text talks about the habit of returning to the LORD.

These are the words of Moses, who has been told that he would not accompany the Israelites into the promised land. But he was given time to encourage the Israelites to follow God. He does that in the book of Deuteronomy.

Moses told the Israelites that even though they had determined to follow God, they could still fail him (25).

He said they were going to get into the promised land, be in that land a long time, have children and have grandchildren. But he warned them that as they lived their lives they would be tempted to do things that would anger their God. He summarized those things with these words:

• if you act corruptly, make an idol in the form of anything, and do what is evil in the sight of the Lord your God…

Moses had already written down God’s law to fill in all the details of that summary, and he would also provide the book of Deuteronomy as a second reading, so the Israelites would know exactly what God expected of his covenant citizens.

Moses told the Israelites that even though they had determined to follow God, they could still fail him. Even though they had committed themselves to leaving Egypt, there was still some of Egypt that had not left them. Even though they were physically going to where God wanted them to go, there was still the possibility of their getting there and failing to live the way God wanted them to live.

We are in a congregation today of people who have committed themselves to following God. We have made the choice to become Christians, and that choice means that we want to do what God commands. But we need to know that people who have committed themselves to following God are capable of failing God. It is absolutely essential that we know that.

The New Testament teaches this truth in the epistles. The epistles were all written to Christian workers, Christian congregations, and Christian leaders. Yet over and over again the epistles reveal problems that are the direct result of the sins and failures of those people. One of the reasons for the epistles is to provide guidance for Christians who want to correct their failures and return to a right relationship with the Lord.

Moses told the Israelites that there would be consequences of their failure to obey God (26b-28).

Listen again to this revelation:

• “you will quickly perish from the land you are about to cross the Jordan to possess. You will not live long there, but you will certainly be destroyed. The Lord will scatter you among the peoples, and you will be reduced to a few survivors among the nations where the Lord your God will drive you. There you will worship man-made gods of wood and stone, which cannot see, hear, eat, or smell.”

Let’s talk about the consequences that are revealed here.

First, there is the loss of life. If the Israelites failed to obey God’s law, he would take away his protection from them and allow them to lose battles, and to die from diseases, and to turn on each other and take each others’ life. His promise to his own people is that if they rebelled against him, they would not live long in the promised land, but “will certainly be destroyed.”

Secondly, there is the loss of unity. If the Israelites did not obey the covenant in that place, they would be scattered to other places “among the peoples” – that is, the Gentiles. God’s will was for them to know the joy of a community dedicated to him. But if the Israelites refused to obey God, he would send them to other places where they could not experience that community.

Thirdly, there is the loss of importance. God’s will was to manifest his greatness by multiplying the nation which he brought to the promised land. They were to be the most important people on the face of the earth – God’s own. But if those people rebel against his covenant, he would drive them to other nations and reduce them to a few survivors there. When your numbers are reduced, you become less important. When you are few in number, the kings of those foreign nations don’t feel obligated to protect you. When you are reduced to a minority, your civil rights can be trampled on. That’s not fair, but that is the way it is.

Finally, there is the loss of identity. God’s will was that the Israelites demonstrate their uniqueness. They were to be a unique people in their relationship with God. Note how that is expressed in these scriptures:

• Exodus 19:5 “Now if you will carefully listen to me and keep my covenant, you will be my own possession out of all the peoples, although the whole earth is mine”

• Deuteronomy 14:2 “for you are a holy people belonging to the Lord your God. The Lord has chosen you to be his own possession out of all the peoples on the face of the earth.”

• Deuteronomy 26:18 “And today the Lord has affirmed that you are his own possession as he promised you…”

• Psalm 135:4 “For the Lord has chosen Jacob for himself, Israel as his treasured possession.”

Moses tells the Israelites that some of their descendants are going to be so corrupted by the nations they are scattered in, that they will be idol worshipers just like the pagans. I can imagine the gasps of horror when those words were read in the assembly. The people would think “we could never do such a thing.” But then they would remember the golden calf. They would understand that they are capable of becoming just like the world around them.

There are severe consequences for the person who claims to know God and yet chooses to disobey him.

But there is good news in this text as well.

Moses told the Israelites that even when all these things happened to them, they could still return to the LORD (29-30).

God’s glorious gospel is reflected in this Old Testament text. It tells the Israelites that they can fail God, and there will be terrible consequences for doing so. But then Moses tells the Israelites that when they have experienced all that tragedy they can still come to their senses and return to God.

Moses invites the Israelites to imagine being exiles in a foreign land – victims of death, destruction, scattering, reduced to a minority of unimportant people discriminated against, turned into pagan idol worshipers – as far away from God and his will as is possible. Then hes says:

• “But from there, you will search for the Lord your God, and you will find him when you seek him with all your heart and all your soul. When you are in distress and all these things have happened to you, in the future you will return to the Lord your God and obey him.”

They could still return to the Lord.

Like the prodigal son – feeding pigs in a foreign land and longing to eat the slop. But the prodigal son became the wise son. He came to his senses and said “‘How many of my father’s hired workers have more than enough food, and here I am dying of hunger! I’ll get up, go to my father, and say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight’” (Luke 15:17b-18).

God’s glorious gospel declares that no matter how far down the road you have gone, it is not too late to turn back.

In fact, Moses tells the Israelites that they are going to get to such a point that they realize (like the prodigal son did in the parable) that there was nowhere else to go. Moses told them not that they could return – not that they might return, but that they would return.

• “you will search for the Lord your God”
• “you will find him”
• “you will return to the Lord your God and obey him”

How could Moses be so confident that the Israelites would eventually turn back to God?

Moses grounded his confidence in the faithfulness and compassion of God himself (31).

He told the Israelites that God “will not leave you, destroy you, or forget the covenant with your ancestors that he swore to them by oath, because the Lord your God is a compassionate God.”

Moses was certain that the Israelites would return to God – not because they are a great people, but because they have a great God.

When the prodigal returned, he was met by a loving father who ran to him, threw his arms around him and kissed him. He welcomed him back with a celebration because even though the son had done wrong, his father still loved him dearly.

That is our God. That is a God who does not look down on us and seek to condemn us, but runs up to us and rescues us in love. The LORD our God is a compassionate God.

If you have sinned against God and heaven, I don’t have to warn you about the consequences of that choice. You are already feeling those consequences.

What I need to tell you is that the God that you have sinned against loves you and he wants you back. You have damaged your relationship with him but he wants to restore it. You have brought suffering on yourself that you did not have to endure, but he wants to heal you.

And the reason I can tell you this in confidence has nothing to do with you. The reason I can tell you that you can return to the Lord is that he will not leave you. He does not want to destroy you. The LORD your God is a compassionate God.