Sermon: In Your Heart (Deuteronomy 6:4-9)

Sermon can be heard here.

We live in a great nation.  A nation I believe blessed by God.  We are a nation who has pursued freedom from tyranny, which is defined as “the unrestrained exercise of power.”  Many have died protecting this freedom not just for our nation, but for people everywhere.  In fact seven soldiers of our nation died this week.  In history of the world the United States of America is unique.  There has never been an establishment of a nation based on this statement:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed”

In this statement we as a nation recognize God as the Creator and sustainer of our nation.  We know that God sustains and establishes all nations for His good will and purpose.  But I believe our nation’s founding fathers were intent on establishing this country on biblical principles.  In fact it is the basic biblical principles of grace, forgiveness, justice and righteousness this nation has allowed for such an incredible amount of diversity.   It is these principles that we have deployed the world over to confront evil and to rebuild nations.  What I fear is we have begun to lose these basic principles and the question then becomes, how do we recover them?   

Tomorrow is Memorial Day and as a veteran myself I have had the honor and privilege of serving my nation.  I want to see America continue to a force of good in the world.  With that said this is not my home.  I am a member of another kingdom; I belong to the kingdom of God first and foremost.  My heart is with the Lord’s in whatever nation He places me.  

Why do I make such a statement?  Because I think it is far more important for us to understand the big picture.  I do not put my faith in nations or the law of government.  They cannot change people’s hearts and if I thought they could I would have been a politician.  I know the truth about man’s heart and the only thing that can change the human heart is the living God, through Jesus Christ.  As a Christian my sole purpose is to live for the glory of Christ.  My time here is short but my time in heaven is for eternity. 

So how do we recover the basic biblical principles in our nation and why does it matter.  I hope to answer that question this morning and I think it starts with our children and I’ll explain why.   

In the Bible God established the people of Israel as a nation.  And right before he did Moses gave them finial instructions.   

Set the Stage

In the book of Deuteronomy we see Moses reminding the people of Israel of what to expect and what NOT to do once they are established.  Moses knows he will not enter the promise land with them.  He has led them for over 40 years from Egypt and through the deserts.  He has constantly interceded for them to God directly and now everything has been leading up to this.  So he tells them. 

"Listen, Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is One. Love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart. Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a symbol on your forehead. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” (Deuteronomy 6:4-9 HCSB)

Shema (hear)

Deuteronomy 6:4 is the most quoted verse in the bible.  Orthodox Jews have recited this verse twice a day for thousands of years.  It is still recited today.  Jesus quoted this verse “He said to him, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and most important command. The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.”

(Matthew 22:37-39 HCSB)  In doing so he summed up the heart of the Law. 

          -Your Everything

Shema means to hear or listen.  Moses is saying this is something you have to pay attention to.  Like right now sit up and listen, take notice at what I am about to say.  He is saying if you miss this, you will suffer greatly, this is very important for you to understand.  It’s like when your son runs out in the street and the conversation you with him on the sidewalk.  His life depends on him understanding.  

What he tells them is what is going to separate the Israelites from the rest of the nations around them.  Firstly there is only one God, He is Yahweh. 

There are no other gods.  He is not many God’s, He is the one God and He is Sovereign.  The nations around them would worship multiple gods.  Israel was monotheistic which was different from everyone else.  

Secondly, this was a relationship based on love. It wasn’t a relationship built on legalism out of a sense of duty or necessity, but love.  This wasn’t just any love either; this love was to be much deeper.  In the Bible this love goes along the lines of husband and wife, father and son.  This love was to be the core of their being; they were to love the Lord with everything—from your heart.     

          -Your Heart

This idea gives some insight into the thinking of the ancient Hebrew life.  The heart was regarded was the seat of the mind.  From the heart, people lived their lives. It was the source of one’s being.  The heart was what made a person, their essence.  That idea didn’t change in the New Testament.  In fact we see how in the New Covenant God would write these principles upon our heart.  And out of love and devotion to Christ for what He has done for us we would follow his commands ‘wholeheartedly’, all of our heart, soul and strength.  

There wasn’t to be a shared love with anything else, this love and devotion is complete and undivided, Yahweh is Lord, period.  They were to love no one else.  This love for the Lord was to be passed onto the next generation.  His commandments were to be obeyed from generation to generation.  So Moses attaches special importance on teaching of their children.  

Engrave them

To ensure the passing on of this Love for Yahweh, the parents, every member of society was to aid in the teaching of the children.  

          -Children

The words and works of the Lord were to be chiseled into the lives of the hearts of the children.  The picture in verse 6-7 is that of an engraver.  He would use a chisel and a hammer to etch each word very carefully into granite.  It would take patience, endurance and once finished would be permeate.  This was to be accomplished by incorporating the covenant and its instruction into every aspect of their lives.       

         

-Talk About

They were to talk about it.  The word of the Lord was to be on their lips.  They were to share the stories of what God had done for their nation.  For what God had done in their lives.  Every conversation was to be seasoned with the words and thoughts of the Lord.  

-Walk About

When they walked, lied down, or got up, God and His ways were to be the topic.  Every opportunity that was given to share His word, His principles, most of all His love was to be taken advantage of.  Moses goes even further and says to bind them to your arms and foreheads, write the words on your door frames of your house and on your gates to be seen as you leave and return!  

          -Live About

They were to live it out in front of their children, every person always.  They were set apart by the Lord and they were to be different from everyone else in the promise land.  They were to be Yahweh’s people and He would be their God.  This was to be the heart of the entire nation and they where to impress this on every child.  

Everything Depends On It!

Because everything depended on it!  Let’s pick up in verse 10, and see what I mean. 

"When the LORD your God brings you into the land He swore to your fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that He would give you--a land with large and beautiful cities that you did not build, houses full of every good thing that you did not fill them with, wells dug that you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant--and when you eat and are satisfied, be careful not to forget the LORD who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery. Fear Yahweh your God, worship Him, and take your oaths in His name. Do not follow other gods, the gods of the peoples around you, for the LORD your God, who is among you, is a jealous God. Otherwise, the LORD your God will become angry with you and wipe you off the face of the earth.”

(Deuteronomy 6:10-15 HCSB)

How do we get back to the basic biblical principles our nation was founded on and why does it matter?  It starts with our children.  It starts at home.  Each parent needs to take the responsibility to teach and to live Christ and His word in front of their children.  Mom and Dad are to model and to teach their children the word of God.  The church is to equip and train the parents and to assist them in teaching the children.  They are not primarily responsible for teaching the children they are to equip and assist.

We have to get back to this basic principle to ensure and to pass on Christ to the future generations.  Because if we don’t we will cease to be a nation of good, a nation God can use for his good will and purpose and we will cease to exist.  I believe this with all my heart. 

We the people do not sustain this nation.  It is not our will and determination that holds everything together.  It is not the collective goodness of our people that makes America great.  It is God and His grace and mercy.  The founding fathers acknowledged this idea and were fearful of losing it. George Washington said this:

‘I am sure that never was a people, who had reason to acknowledge a Divine interposition in their affairs, than those of the United States; and I should be pained to believe that they have forgotten that agency, which was so often manifested during our Revolution, or that they failed to consider the omnipotence of the God who is alone able to protect them.”       

Tomorrow is Memorial Day.  I would encourage you to attend one of the local ceremonies honoring those who gave their lives in the defense of this nation.  I would also ask you to consider what has been said here this morning and praise God for His blessings He has poured out on us as a people.  I would also encourage you to think about the urgency in which we need to get back to teaching our children about the Lord.  Realize we all have a hand in this, it is all of our responsibly to talk, walk and live the gospel.   I close with this verse. 

“I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Choose life so that you and your descendants may live, love the LORD your God, obey Him, and remain faithful to Him.” (Deuteronomy 30:19-20 HCSB)

They Will See Christ In Me

Every Friday I meet with two Jehovah Witnesses.  I have been meeting with one (his name is Bob) for five years on and off.  We have exchanged some lively conversations about our different beliefs.  I come to realize we are not going to budge each other off our beliefs so why continue the conversation.  Many by now would have tossed them aside and surly would not have them in their house.  Let me say I wouldn’t encourage a new Christian or someone not mature in their faith and understanding of the Bible to attempt this.  Jehovah Witnesses have a hundred years of practice.  They have mastered using your Bible knowledge against you.  So I wouldn’t encourage you to engage them on that level unless you are confident in your core doctrinal beliefs.  The primary belief you need to know is Christ and his deity, and his role the trinity.  

 So why continue the conversation? I continue the conversation for one reason, that they might see Christ in me.  Through prayer God will use me to reveal himself to them and draw them in.  Through my actions God might reach them.  I want to love them as Christ loves them.  So I pray for their salvation and that God would show his love for them through me.  So I continue to meet with them.  I believe this is how we are to be with all people, let them see Christ in me. 

Don’t Worry!

 “Don't worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.”

 ~Philippians 4:6 HCSB

Paul writing to the Philippians church tells them not to worry about anything, nothing at all.  Now I don’t know about you but there are many times in my life I have worried.  Look around you, there are many things to be worried about.  But here is Paul having the nerve to say don’t worry.  How can this man, Paul have so much confidence?  How can Paul not worry!  He has people trying to kill him.  People all around him are suffering.  He himself has been beaten, stoned, jailed, shipwrecked, and bitten by a poisonous snake!  And that isn’t everything!  He would eventually lose his life, and he says don’t worry! 

Prayer was Paul’s confidence.  He prayed about everything and trusted God to take care of him.  God took Paul’s faith and used it to make Christ known to the world.  You look at the list above and know Paul suffered, so how is that being taken care of by God?  People around Paul saw him suffer.  We read about what Paul experienced and we see Paul’s faith grow and we are amazed.  Without Paul suffering and God using it to build his faith, he could have never written most of the New Testament in the same way.  No Paul’s experiences and seeing God’s hand deliver him time after time allowed him to give thanks in any situation and say with confidence, “Rejoice, again I say rejoice!” 

So what is it you are going through and how is God using your experience to build your faith?  Have you looked back and realized how God has used past experiences to build your faith?  I look back on my life and I can see Him using everything that has happened to me to bring Him glory.  He used past pains and sufferings to make me into the person I am today.  Do I want to revisit those past events?  Not at all, but at the same time I am thankful because without them I would be incomplete.  Only God can do that, only God can take tragedy and turn it into something beautiful and helpful to others.  God deserves all the credit, all the glory!    

So I’ll close with one thought.  The only time you need to worry is…when your problems are NOT in God’s hands.  

Lord help us to trust you with everything.  Lord help us to give thanks for everything that happens to us.  Lord we pray for you to use us for your purpose and glory and most of all Lord, help us not to worry about anything!  Amen

June 2011 Newsletter

The other day a member of our church was sharing with me about sharing Christ with a man in Subway.  He had asked her what the sandwiches were for and she told him church, which led to the question what church.  She told him and he said he was seeking and she told him about Christ.  How he was the only way to heaven, he was God in flesh and he came to die for us. The man wanted to know more!  She said it was just natural, I just started sharing.  While she was telling me this I got goose bumps!  This is what it is all about, sharing Christ with others.  The world around us is starving for something more.  They have sampled the buffet of the American culture, where you can get Buddhist’s bean sprouts, with a Hindu carrot salad.  Throw in baked chicken ala Christian, with a side of Holy Spirit (use cautiously).  Don’t forget a big helping of self potatoes and I need that now desert.  People are looking for so much more, they need Jesus.  They are looking for answers and are not finding them.  They are eating but are never satisfied and we have both the answers and the food that will nourish their souls.

Our country had been hit with tornados, floods and end time announcers.  Around the world there has been devastating earthquakes, floods, financial hardships, government upheavals.  People are need of having a sure place to stand.  The world is built itself upon the shifting sands and the storms are bringing crashing destruction.  The Bible is clear life isn’t easy here on earth.  Bad things are happening and will continue to happen.  Every day we wake up in peace and safety should start with praise for God’s grace.  There is urgency for the gospel and it is our privilege to share it with them.  We are the body of Christ, a royal priesthood, a holy people.  We are in the world for the sole purpose of sharing Christ with others.  We are to intercede on their behalf to a God they do not know personally, they only know of him. 

Paul asked the question in Romans 10:14-15, “But how can they call on Him they have not believed in? And how can they believe without hearing about Him? And how can they hear without a preacher? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: How beautiful are the feet of those who announce the gospel of good things!” The gospel has to be shared by believers, people who follow Christ, people changed by the gospel.  The gospel, Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures was buried and on the third day rose again according to the scriptures.  By putting our trust in what Christ did for us, not in any of our works, we are saved.  Christ is the Rock, he is what we are to build our lives on.  Christ is what the world is longing for, and we need to share him.  My sincerest prayer for our church body is we would be known for how naturally we share Christ, how we long for others to know him.    

Seek First The Lord

“David was in a difficult position because the troops talked about stoning him, for they were all very bitter over the loss of their sons and daughters. But David found strength in the LORD his God.” ~1 Samuel 30:6 HCSB

David and his men returned home to Ziklag.  Only to find it had been burnt down and plundered.  The women and children had been kidnapped, including David’s two wives.  David’s men wept bitterly and were very angry and wanted to stone David.  In this situation David sought the Lord.  He found his strength in the Lord.  Afterwards he asked for guidance from God, who told him to pursue those who had burnt down the town, and he would rescue the people. Which is exactly what David did and he got his family back.  David never lost sight to the fact it was God who handed over the raiders.  It was God who gave them the strength, it was God who protected them, and it was God who won the victory.   

How many times have you faced a dire situation?  Or had the people around you mad at you for something?  It is times like this we can do several things.  Some people run.  They get out of the situation, move, quit, whatever it takes to get away.  Some people try to rationalize their way through sometimes making things worse.  Some will just dig in their heels and hurt people even more.  Or do you seek the Lord?  Do you go to the Lord in prayer and allow him to work the situation.  Time after time I have had to learn this lesson the hard way.  I try one of the ways mentioned above and find myself worst off.  But every time I hand over the problem to the Lord, he fixes it.  We need to follow David’s example and seek the Lord immediately, not after we have exhausted all of our own ideas.  How much pain and misery we could spare ourselves and those God has surrounded us with, if only we would go to him in prayer.  

Lord help us to seek you first in everything.  Lord you are the living God, our shield and refuge in times of trouble.  Lord guide us and direct us, give us a heart to follow you.  Amen