Badenoch Free Church

Sunday morning service 17th June 2007

 

 

Personal soul care : Meditation. Intro:

The bible places great value on the human being.

We are made in Gods image.

We are given responsibility and dignity.

We have been given great gifts: creativity; productivity; authority etc.

Yet the bible also makes clear that within the human race there is a divide.

Those who are for God and those who are against God.

There is a massive difference between the believer and the unbeliever.

At times the difference is shown in dramatic pictures!

As in psalm one!

Unbelievers are : V1 ungodly, sinners, scornful !!

V4 chaff - useless leftovers !!

V6 perishable - not of any lasting value!!

Basically the psalmist says that the unbeliever is an unproductive waste of space that will ultimately perish!

Why does the psalmist draw this picture of the unbeliever?

Because he wants to contrast the unbeliever at his worst, with the believer at his best!

This might lead us to think that the psalmist is just using poetry to create a memorable picture but a picture that it is not quite true!

In many ways it would be nice to think like that. We don’t like to think of unbelievers as people who are a waste of space.

In fact we know many unbelievers who are fine upstanding members of the community!

You maybe don’t really believe in the Lord Jesus, this morning, but you don’t like to think of yourself as a waste of space either!

Yet the picture is a true picture!

Because the unbeliever is someone who lives without the grace of God in their lives and without God none of us are useful / fruitful members of the human race! And in that sense unbelievers are a waste of space!

That is the clear teaching of scripture:

John 1:3-4 ³ Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. ⁴ In him was life, and that life was the light of men.

John 15:5 ^{5 "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing}.

The bible message is that every single one of us needs God! We were created by God and for God - without him we do not work properly! But with him we can work magnificently!

The good news is - God is there ready and wanting to take us!

So the unbeliever is an unproductive waste of space that will ultimately perish!

In contrast to that is the believer!

Believers are, according to the psalmist:

A) V1 blessed / deeply happy

In the context of the psalm : one is looked upon as blessed because of certain actions.

When you become a Christian you enter into the “blessed” life. Or the “happy” life.

This is the search that we are all engaged in - the search for happiness and the believer is the only one who finds true happiness.

Immediately this raises a question for those of us who claim to be believers.

Do I match up to this picture of the believer? Am I deeply happy etc?

B) V2 full of joy / delight in God

To delight in the law of God is to delight in God!

The law is the revelation of Gods character. It is not something separate from him!

Again we need to ask: who or what is our source of joy?

C) V3 productive and healthy

Only the Christian is truly health and productive! Because only the Christian lives in the source of life!

The Christian is like a well watered tree! Beautiful, healthy, productive, unique, special, has a purpose, different from everybody else, glorious!!!

D) V6 protected / watched over / known by God.

As trees are watched over and cared for by the gardener, so are believers cared for by God. Our world is becoming increasingly lonely! People no longer know there neighbours! How tragic it is - yet for the believer it is quite different! The believer is known by God!

“nobody knows me / nobody understands me!” God knows you!

What an amazing picture of the believer! Does this match up in your own experience?

If not, why not?

For those of us who believe and want this remarkable life what do we need to do?

What is the key?

We need to look after our soul!

By following v2:

Psalm 1:2 ² But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.

We need to delight in and meditate upon the Lord!!

“Whatever really shapes a mans thinking shapes his life” Kidner.

Over the past few Sunday morning we have looked at - prayer and solitude in the life of the Lord, we have looked at guarding our heart, we have looked at the overflow of the heart.

Now another essential in taking care of our soul: meditation upon God.

To meditate is to fill our minds with scripture!

 

Meditation is not emptying the mind!

Application:

1) Read the bible, memorise the bible.

Muse over the word. Listen to it. Think about it. Love it.

See it for what it is: essential spiritual food. You need it! Without it you starve! Long for it.

2) attend as church much as possible

Come longing to hear from God. Come hungry. Come prayerful. Come expectantly.

3) talk about the word at every opportunity

4) take a verse as you go to bed at night. Fall asleep with it in you heart.

5) obey any revelation that comes through meditation!

If God speaks to you in a powerful way be careful to obey!

6) share your experiences with one another! Share the blessings!

7) do it all for the love of God. Delight in Him!

 

 

Sunday evening service:

 

1 John 3 : the appearing-s of the Lord.

The gospel in OT times was hidden!

Nobody knew for sure what God was going to do!

Gods plan of salvation was a mystery.

See : Colossians 1:25-26

So it was a mystery!

But now that mystery has been revealed.

The mystery is of course the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus is Gods plan of salvation!

Salvation is not a theory, not a plan of action as such,

But a person. Salvation is the Lord Jesus Christ!

Salvation is all about the appearing of the Lord!

1 John 1:2 ^{2 The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us}.

1 John 3:2 will appear again. 1 John 3:5 to take sin away 1 John 3:8 to destroy

1 John 4:9 ⁹ This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.

The greatest event the world has ever witnessed is this “appearing” of the Lord!

So why did he appear?

1: we saw last week that he appeared to “take away our sins” 1john3v5

This week we will see 2 more reasons as to why the Lord appeared.

1^st: “to destroy the devils work.”

Jesus came to go to war with the devil! To destroy the work of the devil.

The devil has been working since the beginning of time to destroy the work of God!

Now in the appearing of Jesus the work of the devil is destroyed.

What does this mean?

The devil is now a defeated foe! Jesus has already appeared and destroyed his work!

Luke 10:1 After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go.

Luke 10:17-18 ^{17 The seventy-two returned with joy and said, "Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name." 18 He replied, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven}.

The devil is now a defeated foe! His day is over! He has fallen.

This points to the fullness of the work of salvation.

When Jesus appeared is was not just to take away sin! Although that is a great and mighty part of the work of salvation. He appeared also to destroy the enemy!

We have seen our country go to war in Iraq. They went in with one aim - to destroy Sadam Hussain. But they did not realise the chaotic consequences that would ensue! They are still struggling to finish the job!

 

Jesus came to save the world! And he has done everything necessary to make that possible. Which includes destroying the work of the enemy. No mistakes, nothing left undone! The job is finished.

John 19:30 ^{30 When he had received the drink, Jesus said, "It is finished." With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit}.

What then of the evil that we still see round and about us?

Remember that the ultimate reality behind it all is that the devil is a defeated foe.

The devil is now like a fish out of water: jumping about half dead on the shore!

Jesus is the One who now has all authority in heaven and on earth.

His Kingdom is the one that is advancing. The devils is in hasty retreat!

So Jesus appeared to take our sin away! He appeared to destroy the work of the devil!

All of this great and magnificent! But we can still ask why?

What is the ultimate reason for Jesus appearing and destroying the work of the devil and taking our sins away? Why did he do it?

1 John 4:9 ^{9 In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him}.

That is why Jesus appeared! To show us the love of God! That we might live through Him!

The Lord Jesus appeared and did all that he did; so that we might live!!

Salvation is not just about destroying the work of the devil, or getting your sins forgiven. Salvation is about getting life!

That is the whole point!

Jesus came to give us life! Without Him we are dead! Not half alive, not struggling for breath, but dead! Yet in Him we are truly alive!

Jesus appeared, doing all that he did, to save us. To give us life!

So now if you believe, what is different?

The difference is: you “live through him.”

Physically we live through oxygen / food / water. We need “fuel” to live.

Spiritually we have life through Jesus.

This is what it means to be “in him.” It means we live through him!

John 14:6 ⁶ Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life.

1 John 5:20 ²⁰ We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true--even in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.

Jesus is eternal life. We live through him, in him. We live because He lives!

Yet in order for all this to happen Jesus had to appear. He had to take away our sin. He had to destroy the work of the devil.

We live because he has done all this for us!

1 John 4:10 ^{10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins}.

We live because he died for us! He took away our sin, removed the offence!