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JESUS' TOP TEN WORDS OF ADVICE #10

FAITH SETS UP A RENDEZVOUS

Well here we are. We’ve done our countdown through the Top Ten words of advice that come to us in the New Testament. We've covered ten through two. And before we get to number one, let's review just a bit. Let's take a look back at the things Jesus and His apostles urged us to do the most.

Now, remember that each one of these admonitions relates back to the single, essential command: love. That sums everything up: love God with all your heart; love your neighbor as yourself. Love is the best word of advice you'll ever get.

But how do we love effectively? How do we express love to God and to others? These Top Ten words of advice give us some great handles on that.

So, at number ten we had "resist." Saying no to evil is a value the New Testament emphasizes. And we do that best not just by hunkering down, but by bearing witness against the enemy, making a positive statement of faith.

At number nine we had "spread peace." We share the peace Christ offers from the cross. And that means we see people according to their needs. In fact, that's how we can disarm difficult people---by spotting their needs.

At number eight, that is the eighth-most emphasized admonition in the New Testament, we had "give cheerfully." We learned that we opening our hand, that is practicing generosity, is what enlarges our capacity to receive.

"Sustain joy" was seventh on the list. The New Testament shows us that we can create a contentment that lasts through the leverage of praise.

The sixth-most emphasized admonition in the New Testament is "persist patiently." We learned that the way we can persevere with joy is to have something to express. That makes the critical difference.

At number five came "encourage daily." Jesus and the Apostles show us that we can build healthier relationships through a musical language, the musical language of grace.

"Forgive for good" occupied fourth place in the Top Ten. Each of us can learn to forgive for good, when we forgive from a position of strength, as Jesus did on the cross.

Number three: "Love the truth." The New Testament urges us to hang on to what we have by reaching out for more. That's the secret.

Occupying number two was, "overflow with thanks." Jesus and His apostles suggest that our whole world can lighten up when we practice thanksgiving. Thanksgiving opens the aperture of our hearts and lets the light in.

And all this brings us to number one. What did Jesus and His apostles urge us to do the most? What does the biggest spotlight fall on?

Well, it has to do with something very basic, very essential: faith. Live by faith. Faith stands out as the quality the New Testament mentions the most—483 references to faith, belief, believe. Jesus pointed the lame, the blind, the proud and the broken to it as their only hope. The apostles center their gospel around it.

But what does "live by faith" mean in practical terms? How do you do that?

Well, listen to this. The writers of the New Testament tell us that something extraordinary happens when we "live by faith." In Ephesians Paul promises that Christ can live in our hearts through faith. And since Christ is “the fullness of God,” we weak, mistake-prone human beings, can be “filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” (Ephesians 4:19, NIV)

In other words, faith can make more of us. Living by faith actually multiplies us. We get to tap into God’s omnipotence and omnipresence. That’s a life-changing promise.

Sounds fantastic. But wait a minute, how does this work in the real world? How does it work in the high-tech present? Today we live by their wits. We live by the laws of science. We live defensively. What does it mean to live by faith?

Try an experiment. It's called: setting up a rendezvous. Here's how. First, spot a need. What challenge are you facing? How about the people around you? Maybe your spouse is feeling down, maybe your child is having conflicts at school, maybe you have to find a new job.

Then brainstorm a bit about how God might meet that need. What’s a solution? What’s the first step from here to there? Pray about how you can cooperate with the Almighty.

Finally, set up a rendezvous. Ask God to meet you at that point of need. That's the rendezvous: you, God, and someone's need. Prayerfully decide to become part of the solution.

A young teacher named Jeremy tried that out one morning. He was inspired to ask God to make the Apostle Paul's words: "Encourage one another; build one another up," come true in his life that day. "Lead me to someone I can help," he prayed--and really meant it. Well, what do you know, that very morning, a fellow teacher took him aside and poured out her anguish. She was having a career crisis. And Jeremy was able to give some real comfort. But what really impressed this young man was that he had never been much of a shoulder to cry on--just the typical guy, content with work and an occasional game of football. But now this rendezvous with God, at a point of need, had pushed him far beyond himself.

You know friends, I’ve been amazed by how providences multiply as soon as I go where I’m pointing God. He always amplifies prayerful action. Did you get that? God amplifies prayerful action.

That's how you live by faith. You focus on what God can do, not just on what you can't do.
When two blind men by a Galilean road asked Jesus for help, He got them to focus on His power: “Do you believe that I am able to do this?”

They did. And Jesus acted.

When a leper approached Jesus and said, “If you are willing, you can make me clean,” the Master rewarded his faith immediately, healing him of his disease. (Matthew 8:2, NIV)

Jesus wanted people to affirm the fact that he could meet their needs. He still does. He wants us thinking about His abilities, not just our disabilities. He wants us looking at how big God is, not at how big, or small, our faith is.

You know what? "Live by faith" is the number one New Testament command because it's so practical. Faith helps calm us down. We don’t waste energy banging against a brick wall. Faith helps to focus us. We don’t get paralyzed by the problems. Faith connects us to a God who’s bigger than our biggest challenges.

One blustery, stormy day during the depression, a farm boy named Raymond huddled in the family cellar. A tornado was rampaging through the town of Texarkana. It would uproot telephone poles and send livestock miles away. Raymond’s eyes were glued to the rattling cellar door. He thought that at any second the storm would break in and drag him away.

Fortunately, the tornado left Raymond's family unhurt. They repaired their homestead and went back to plowing corn. But Raymond remained terrified. Every time a dark cloud rolled by, every time a gust of wind swept through the treetops---he froze with fear. And the boy began to think this secret terror would never leave him.

One week, a visiting minister came to the white frame church two miles down the road. He spoke about the power of faith and prayer. He insisted that God is big enough to meet our smallest and greatest needs.

Well, Raymond decided to try it out. He slipped off to the scrub oak woods, looked up at the sky and told God he was awfully tired of this fear and would he, Sir, mind taking it away from him?
Well the next time the sky darkened, Raymond realized he wasn't panicking. The next time the wind picked up he felt strangely calm. It seemed like God had simply dissolved the terror that had haunted him.

But it was years later that Raymond really understood the difference God had made. He found himself on a Navy ship in the middle of a fierce storm in the Pacific. It was World War II. Fifty-foot waves exploded against the steel of his troop carrier. As the ship swayed and pitched, everyone except those trying to keep it on course, fled below deck.

Everyone fled, that is, except Raymond. He was hanging on to the upper deck railing, soaked with spray as the ship roller-coastered through the waves. This sailor was enjoying the storm immensely. For weeks he'd been crammed into narrow quarters along with hundreds of other sailors and marines. Now his youthful energies seemed to expand in the storm. It was exhilarating. To him, it seemed like a mid-ocean rendezvous with God’s majesty and omnipotence. While battle hardened marines were throwing up in the hold, Chief Yoeman Raymond Mosley, felt awed and humbled by the vast drama around him.

Friends, faith expands us in all “the fullness of God.” Faith makes more of us.
When storms threaten, faith lifts a sail.

Thank you for joining us today. Take some time to worship God in your church this weekend, then be sure and come back next week when we'll be looking for more good advice from Jesus. Our topic: “Disciplines of the Glad Heart: The Gift of Giving!” Until then, this is Lonnie Melashenko reminding you that it's always true, friend, God loves you.