Stand
message Clutch Student Ministries
Pastor Jordan Biel Rock of Grace A/G 08.22.2007
Students, I want you to know
one thing and that is that when the storms of life come, (and they will) the
only way you’ll stand and survive is if your foundation is upon Jesus Christ.
We've been hearing a lot of real estate news lately; specifically, how it's a "buyer's market." That's a nice way of saying a lot of people can't seem to sell their homes. If you've never been through the home-buying "experience" which I don’t think you have, you know that assessing the condition of a home's foundation is vital in whether to purchase it. Inspections and appraisals are done. The previous owners are contacted. We do the best research possible before making life's most important financial decision. Still, in spite of all the homework and inspections, we're taking on a risk.
If you have your Bibles,
turn to Luke 6:46-49.
"Why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say? I will show you what he is like who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice. He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete." Foundations just can't be seen with the naked eye, simply because they're below the surface. The siding and shingles can be ornately assembled. You can have some feminine guy from HGTV come out and do some interior decorating! The landscaping may make any neighbor drool at the mere sight of it. BUT, that tells us nothing of the condition of the foundation. Only when a storm comes do we "see" the foundation of a home.
You see, our lives represent
the home that is being built. If we
build our home without a foundation, then are planning to fail and when the
storms come, it will collapse. In the
same way, if we build our lives without Christ, when we have storms in our life
– tragedy, death, conflict, sorrow – our lives will collapse, we’ll have no
where to turn. BUT, if you build your
life on the foundation of Jesus Christ, when the tough times of life come,
you’ll be able to stand through it.
What do we lean on to find
comfort? When we feel stress, where is the first place we go? What
do we, almost by reflex, turn to? That is probably a good indication of
our true foundation. Whatever we put our weight upon, whatever bears the
burden of our existence, that is our foundation. I have to confess
that I've been guilty of spending so much time on the window dressing that I
ignored my foundation. When you’re stressed-out and frustrated, do
you just zone-out in front of the TV – in denial that you need to go to God
about something.
Notice, I didn’t say “if”
the storm comes, I said “when” because life will inevitably be hard at
times. You will at some points in your
life experience hardship, let-down, betrayal.
And at that point, the foundation is exposed.
If you’ve given your life to
Christ, the “cornerstone” the foundation, then you’ll be ok, you’ll trust in
His sovereignty and know that He is in control.
As my Pastor in
So why does He allow
hardship to happen in our life?
Well, I can’t answer that
question in every circumstance because it’s different for every situation.
You see, some things
happen, just because of our bad decisions. The principal of sowing and
reaping is just as true as the principle of God’s mercy. We reap what we sow. If we ignore God and what His Word says to
us, we’ll reap the negative consequences of that in our relationships going
downhill, our finances, and soon.
But sometimes, our
hardship isn’t related to what we’ve done at all. Sometimes it’s just not God’s will. God has a destiny for each of us to fulfill
so if we are in a relationship with somebody that we chose and it seems it’s
only giving us trouble, it may be that God has someone else for us.
The same is true in death
and tragedy. You see McConnells are
facing the death of a family member. And
they are, of course, grievous and sad, but not completely devastated and left
without hope. WHY? Because they’ve put their hope in Christ and
it’s so comforting to know when a family member or friend passes away that they
had a relationship with God through Jesus Christ.
Christians and
non-Christians will both experience tragedy.
Only Christians will have a hope and peace that the world without Christ
simply doesn’t have.
We also have to have a grasp
on the fact that sometimes bad things happen to good people just because we
are in a fallen world. Because
people sin, there are consequences. Meaning,
we’re sinners. Now we who’ve accepted
Christ are sinner’s saved by grace – we’re forgiven. But hear this, I believe, many times that the
eternal consequences of our sin is forgiven, but not the earthly temporal
consequences of it. Meaning, we’re truly
forgiven of our sins and that sin will no longer send us to Hell, we’ll go to
Heaven, BUT, we’ll still have some negative consequences of our bad decisions
while we’re on earth.
Sometimes, we haven’t done
anything wrong, but simply because we’re in a fallen word – a world full of
sinning, selfish people, there’s going to be problems, and betrayal and
tragedy.
But remember, the same is
true of our good decisions. “Your
decisions determine your destiny” so if you want to have a good life in the
hands of trusting God, you’ve got to give your life to Him and make good
decisions as He gives you wisdom and you’ll reap the benefits of that.
As Hurricane Dean ravages the western Caribbean and heads toward the Yucatan Peninsula, the citizens are going to get a good idea of what has been built to last and what was done out of convenience. “We don't decide how to deal with a storm when it's storming. It happens in the calm.” Matt Anderson You see, people who are completely devastated by a tragedy of life are left without hope because they didn’t have a plan in action for when the storm would come. But if you’re wise, you’ll have a plan of action and the GOD you can turn to when the storms come.
If a storm hit today, what
would happen? If we were informed we have 6 months to
find a new position, where would we go for relief? If the doctor
called us back in for more tests, where would we automatically go for
comfort? Regardless of whether it's storming or shining, let's do a
foundation inspection today and build our lives upon obedience to God.
Let's come back to him at the start of a new week, find out what he wants us to
do, and do it with all our might. Let's lean on Him for strength.
Let's look to Him for comfort and affection. God, seen in the Son, Jesus
Christ is our only rock, everything else is plywood.
DRAMA> Run
by Kutless
Exodus 15:2 “The
LORD is my strength and my song; he has become my
salvation. He is my God, and I will praise Him!”
You see, our friends and
family are important. In the analogy of
building a home, they would be the support beams, and wood, and drywall. They are crucially important and friends and
family can really help you get through things.
But, listen, they are not the foundation. Your foundation must be Jesus Christ if
you’re going to make it.
When we have sorrows come to
us, after we’ve done everything else we can, we simply must stand. We must be able to stand on God’s Word and
His promises.
Eph. 6:10-13
“Be strong with the Lord’s might power.
Put on all of God’s armore so that you will be able to stand firm
against all strategies and tricks of the Devil.
For we are not fighting against people…but against the evil rulers and
authorites of the unseen world, against those mighty powers of darkness who
rule this world, and against wicked spirits in the heavenly realms. 13. Use every piece of God’s armor to resist
the enemy in the time of evil, so that after the battle, you will be standing
firm.” That’s our goal tonight, to
realize what is that we can do to be prepared for battle’s so that when we
faced them, we are not destroyed but can stand throughout them. Let’s read on.
Eph. 6:14-18
“Stand your ground, putting on the sturdy belt of truth and the body
armor of God’s righteousness. For shoes,
put on the peace that comes from the Good News, so that you will be fully
prepared. (Notice, God is telling us
to tap into God’s peace, clothe yourself with peace before the storm so that
when the storm comes, you know how to get ahold of God’s peace) 16. In every battle, you will need faith as your
shield to stop the fiery arrows aimed at you by Satan, which is the Word of
God. Pray at all times and on every
occasion in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all Christians
everywhere.”
That’s a lot to handle. You may say, well that’s easy for Paul to
say, he was a mighty man of God, an Apostle, a leader of churches.
Paul wrote this while he was
chained down in prison! God is using
Paul to encourage the Ephesians and us tonight that we must be willing and able
to STAND throughout the battles of life.
Luke 7:1-10
This is a real story of a
man faced with a tragedy. And what did
he do. Because his foundation of life
was built on the Lordship of Jesus Christ, he ran straight to Jesus and asked
Him to heal his servant.
Like that drama said, you
decide where you’ll turn in the hard times of life. You decide if you want to give up – get
depressed, even suicidal, or you can decide to turn to Jesus Christ and receive
your help from Him.
Psalm 18:32-34
“God arms me with strength; He has made my way safe. He makes me as surefooted as a deer, leading
me safely along the mountain heights. He
prepares me fore battle… You have given me the shield of your salvations. Your right hand supports me; (right hand
represented authority, blessing, power) Your
gentleness has made me great. …39. You
have armed me with strength for the battle; you have subdued my enemies under
my feet.”
CSM
Students, what I want to ask you tonight is where will you turn in your times
of trouble. Friends and family are great
– they really are a big help – that’s a part of Christianity, but your first
option should always be God. God wants to
give you comfort in times of sorrow.
He’s wants to be there for you.
He wants to be a place of refuge when all of life is falling apart. When you sinned and made the same mistake for
the 100th time, He’s there.
When you’ve found help in nobody else, He’s there. When you’re at the bottom of the barrel –
with no where to turn, He’s there.
God wants
to give you the strength to stand, tonight.
Whether
you’re going through a battle right now or even if you know someone going
through a battle, I want you tonight to physically stand up and receive
strength from God. God wants to be your
strength – your refuge, but only if you let Him, only if you are willing to
call out to Him.
When
trials come and they will, STAND!