Will you Honor God?
Putting First Things First
If you think about it, before you begin to do anything of any significance, you always take a moment to think about what has to happen in order for what you want to happen to actually happen. And more often than not, there’s an order to things.
Our family just recently moved into a new house and you know how this is… Whenever you move into a new house there’s a list a mile long of things to do. And I’ve spent hours doing things that are just above my pay grade as a handyman around the house.
Just the other day, I was replacing a sink faucet in my daughter’s bathroom. I thought, I can do this. I’ve got the instructions. I’ve got my friends on YouTube. And I know I can always call my dad if I have a question.
I was so proud when I got the new faucet installed. It looked great. It worked. It was time to clean up. And then I saw it. There was a piece in the box I had overlooked. I thought, surely it’s not important. So I took a picture, sent it to dad and asked, “How important is this piece, really?”
He didn’t text me back. He called me. And when the phone rang I knew before I answered it that I was going to have to take the faucet apart and put it back together again the right way!
Had I read the instructions carefully, I might not have missed it. Had I paid attention to the details, I might not have overlooked it. It’s always a good idea to take a moment to think about what has to happen in order for what you want to happen to actually happen. And to remember that more often than not, there’s an order to things.
Before you do anything of significance, it’s important to think through it and to put first things first.
As we begin this new year, we want to begin by putting first things first.
Mission & Vision
For a church that means getting back to our mission and vision. Remembering who we are and what we’re called to do in this world!
If we’re not careful we can get busy doing what we think we ought to be doing only to look up one day and realize we’ve forgotten something of incredible significance.
But what is our mission and vision as a church?
What are our hopes and dreams for the future? What are we praying for? Dreaming about? What is it, if this happened, we would be overjoyed?
New Year Resolutions in 1813
I’m not sure if this is true, some of you who are true historians feel free to fact check me and let me know what you think, but I’ve heard that this whole idea of New Year’s Resolutions goes back hundreds of years. The phrase, “New Year’s Resolutions,” was apparently first used in a Boston Newspaper on January 1st in 1813 in an article called, “The Friday Lecture.” Here’s a clip from that article:
“Injunctions of new year resolutions who will sin all the month of December with a serious determination of beginning the new year with new resolutions and new behaviour, and with the full belief that they shall thus expiate and wipe away all their former faults.”
The Friday Lecture, 1813
So if I’m reading this right, the whole idea of New Year’s Resolutions was about doing whatever you wanted in December including, but not limited to, eating whatever you wanted in December, believing that you could change your behavior in January and wipe the slate clean! Some of you are wondering if you can rewind the clock a couple of weeks and finish off those Christmas desserts!
Some of you will do really well with New Year’s Resolutions. You’ll stick to it, you’ll make changes, and you’ll get to the end of this year with a deep sense of satisfaction and accomplishment. The rest of us understand that New Year’s Resolutions are just To Do lists for the first week of the year and it’s already January 7th, so we’re done!
Dying Churches
But what if we didn’t just focus on what we hope will be different a year from now, but what we hope will be true a 100 years from now?
You know what the number one problem for most churches is these days? We get so focused on ourselves that we forget who we are and why we are here. Someone once said the gravitational pull of the local church is always towards the inside. And if we’re not careful that can be true of us.
Over the holidays our family took a road trip to visit our family. We spent a lot of time on the road driving to Alabama and back. Do you know how many churches we passed? Do you know how many of those churches are either dead or dying?
It’s not breaking news to tell you that churches are are dying at a rapid rate in this country. Why is that? We could point the finger at our culture or say things just aren’t the way they used to be. We could come up with a long list of reasons but the simple truth is that when a church forgets who they are and why they are here, that church will cease to exist. When a church forgets it’s mission and vision, it will DIE.
But here’s the good news… When we remember who we are and why we are here, the mission and vision that God has given us as a church, we can stay focused on what will matter most a 100 years from now.
Looking Forward by Looking Back
Perhaps the best way to look forward is to look back. The truth is, something happened 2000 years ago that is still having a ripple effect around the world. And sometimes I can’t help but wonder… What if we could be a part of that?
Right before his ascension to heaven, Jesus had instructed his disciples to wait in Jerusalem for the coming of the Holy Spirit. And so they did. They waited, and they waited, and they waited. One day turned into two. Two days turned into three. They’ve been waiting in Jerusalem together for over a week now and as far as they can tell, nothing has happened.
It’s been 50 days since Passover, 10 days since the ascension of Jesus, things in Jerusalem are still tense, the disciples of Jesus are still uncertain about what happens next.
It’s Pentecost, a time to celebrate the harvest of grain, and the disciples of Jesus are all together in Jerusalem when all of a sudden they HEAR something. It sounds like wind but there is no wind.
Then they SEE something, it looks like fire but it isn’t fire.
And then, something happened. All of them who were gathered in that house were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different languages, languages they had never been able to speak before.
People all over the city heard the sound and they came running to see what was happening. They were completely amazed to see people from Galilee who they were now hearing speak in their own native languages. People from all over the region had flooded Jerusalem for the celebration of Pentecost.
Everyone was confused. Some thought these disciples of Jesus were drunk. But it’s 9AM! So Peter steps forward to clear up the confusion and he said, we’re not drunk! No, what you’re seeing and hearing is the fulfillment of a prophecy from Joel when he said…
“‘In the last days,’ God says,
‘I will pour out my Spirit upon all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy.” – Acts 2.17
In other words, we are not drunk, we are filled with the Spirit of the Living God!
Jesus is Alive!
And now that everyone has gathered, Peter takes this opportunity to tell them not just about what is happening, but about what has happened…
“People of Israel, listen! God publicly endorsed Jesus of Nazareth by doing powerful miracles, wonders, and signs through him, as you well know. But God knew what would happen, and his prearranged plan (this was the plan of God from before time began) was carried out when Jesus was betrayed. With the help of lawless Gentiles, you nailed him to a cross and killed him. But God released him from the horrors of death and raised him back to life, for death could not keep him in its grip. – Acts 2.22-24
Peter seizes this moment to preach the first gospel sermon, to retell the story of Jesus, the recent events that had just occurred in Jerusalem, and to reframe those events for the people of God as God’s eternal plan to save people from their sins!
But Peter’s not done yet, he goes on to say…
“God raised Jesus from the dead, and we are all witnesses of this. – Acts 2.32
All these people who gathered here for Passover have stayed in Jerusalem through Pentecost, so they all witnessed what happened 50 days ago when Jesus was crucified. They were eye witnesses to what happened that day. Some of them were a part of the crowd that shouted, “Crucify Him!” And others stood and watched as he bled and died on Calvary’s cross.
Everyone there knew what happened that day in Jerusalem. What they didn’t know was that it was all a part of God’s eternal plan! What they didn’t know was that…
Now he [Jesus] is exalted to the place of highest honor in heaven, at God’s right hand. And the Father, as he had promised, gave him the Holy Spirit to pour out upon us, just as you see and hear today. – Acts 2.33
You can just see the confusion on their faces as Peter is talking. And then, as they come to the realization that if what he is saying is true, then they’ve participated in the crucifixion and killing of God’s Messiah, the One they’ve been waiting on for centuries. And as they begin to realize what they think has happened, Peter confirms it…
“So let everyone in Israel know for certain that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, to be both Lord and Messiah!” – Acts 2.36
Peter says Jesus of Nazareth is Lord and Messiah! And the question hanging out there that no one is asking but everyone is thinking is: What are we going to do now?
We crucified and killed God’s Messiah.
Our sin literally nailed Him to a cross.
Our denial of Jesus as the Son of God, our refusal to believe despite everything we saw Him do and everything we heard Him say, all of it led to his crucifixion on a Roman cross.
What do we do now?
Time Out:
Have you ever had that moment of clarity?
That moment where you realize how, in your own life, you’ve denied Jesus as the Son of God?
How, in your own life, you’ve refused to believe in Him even though you know who He is, what’s He’s said, and what He’s done?
Maybe you’ve been in and around church your whole life, but you haven’t confessed Jesus as Lord and Savior yet. Can I gently ask you, Why not?
Or maybe you’ve made that confession, even been baptized into Christ, but you know you have turned away from Him.
Either way, you may be asking this same question people were asking themselves 2000 years ago when they were confronted with the reality of who Jesus is and what they have done.
WHAT DO WE DO NOW?
If that’s you, listen to happens next…
Peter’s words pierced their hearts, and they said to him and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?” – Acts 2.37
Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. This promise is to you, to your children, and to those far away—all who have been called by the Lord our God.” Then Peter continued preaching for a long time, strongly urging all his listeners, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation!” – Acts 2.38-40
Peter’s Message: Repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.
Those who believed what Peter said were baptized and added to the church that day—about 3,000 in all. – Acts 2.41
What should we do?
Turn away from sin and turn toward God.
In other words, HONOR GOD.
And the truth is you have a decision to make as well. Will you choose to honor God? Or dishonor God?
And the choice you make today could have an impact a 100 years from now.
100 Years Ago
A 100 years ago, Washington tied Navy, 14-14 in the 10th Annual Rose Bowl.
Calvin Coolidge was elected as the 30th President of the United States.
The cost of a stamp was only .02 cents!
The Washington Senators won the World Series.
The Cleveland Bulldogs won the NFL Championship.
The price of gas was .11 cents a gallon.
As a country, we were right in the middle of the roaring 20s!
Average income was $2,196 a year.
You could buy a new car for $265 and a new house for $7,720.
A lot has changed over the past 100 years. My guess is no one knew the price of gas in 1924 or who won the Super Bowl a 100 years ago. I can’t even remember who won the Super Bowl last year without asking Google!
The truth is that we spend a lot of time and money on things that just won’t matter a 100 years from now. But what if we did?
What if you devoted your life to things that will make a difference 100 years from now, a 1000 years from now, 2000 years from now?
How do you do that?
By honoring God and leading people into a growing relationship with Jesus.
This is our mission.
2000 years ago Peter took the opportunity to explain what God had done in and through Jesus and He called people to turn from their sin and to turn toward God.
TO HONOR GOD.
And then Peter, along with all the other disciples and believers in Jesus, began to lead people into a relationship with Jesus.
In fact, on that first Sunday when the church came together, 3000 people were baptized into Christ! 2000 years later, our purpose is the same, to HONOR GOD and LEAD PEOPLE into a growing relationship with HIM.
Here’s what happens, when you leverage your life to make an eternal difference in the lives of others, you honor God.
And when you honor God, you give your life to making an eternal difference in the lives of others.
2 Questions For a New Year:
So instead of New Year’s Resolutions, what if you just tried to answer these two questions:
1: How will you honor God this year?
Maybe you need to change some things in your heart and life so that in all you do you bring honor to God. Maybe you need to realign your life, your choices, your daily decisions with what you know will honor God. A new year brings a new opportunity for a new start. So how will you honor God this year?
And then, let’s take it one step further…
2: Who can you lead into a growing relationship with Jesus this year?
Everyone knows someone who needs Jesus. So who is your ONE? Pray for your ONE!
Our Mission: Honor God
As a church, our mission is to honor God and lead other people into a growing relationship with Jesus.
That’s what we want to do. We believe doing that will make an eternal difference in this world.
There are a lot of other things that can distract us from our mission. There are a lot of obstacles that can be in our way. And truthfully, no one may remember my name or your name a 100 years from now, but it’s our prayer that because of the way we lived people will know the name of Jesus!
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