Informal Sermon notes from Mark Kasperson:

M.Kasperson Sermon “Don’t Forget Me” 3/4/17

Good afternoon

So as you are leaving your best friend/Mother/Father or child what is in your heart when you leave? (I will miss that person. I will feel alone. It hurts to be apart.)

And when you’re apart are you thinking of him or her? How do you feel, how do you start and end your day? Is it somehow involving that missing person in your life, somehow with some sign that gets you thinking about that person as if he or she is here again? Or, how about summing all your feelings up into one phrase, “don’t forget me”?

“Don’t forget me”. How could you forget the person you are so attached to?

Passover season is coming and we will begin looking at how we live in this world, but are not of it, and that we have come out of this world to become children of God.

2Cor 6:18“I will be a Father to you,
And you shall be My sons and daughters,
Says the Lord Almighty.”[

What would pull you away from God your Father? How does your mind accept some other idea? How does your heart drift? Do we see it or does God see it?

Ps 44: 20-21 If we had forgotten the name of our God,
Or stretched out our hands to a foreign god,
21 Would not God search this out?
For He knows the secrets of the heart.

Today, we will explore 3 things that can pull us away from, and cause us to forget the one True God who is the cherished flame of our existence.

This is not something our mind tells us when we get up in the morning. “Yes, I think I will let myself fall in love with another god and serve that god and grow cold to the True God whom I love now… and run down that road to sin, peril and destruction or even worse becoming lukewarm…because lukewarm works like an anesthetic on our reaching out to God and enthusiastically following Him!

Rev 3:16 So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.

We must keep our love and relationship for God alive! And you know that it’s not a traffic light that turns red and stops you cold in your step or a blaring alarm – No, none of these are going to warn us if we are drifting from God. We are going to have to search it out in our hearts and work to find what God already sees in us. But, we are blind to ourselves

Pr 16:2 All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes,
But the Lord weighs the spirits.

We have to learn to watch our own heart’s intent and gaze as it can pull us away from God. It is very subtle. We are just human and as such, things draw on our hearts slowly, in provocative ways and we begin to drift in that direction until we envision our human desire being fulfilled and snap, in a second, we are hooked. Then we are heading on the WRONG path. It is all about what our hearts feel for. How do we begin to see it as we go through every hour of every day? Our hearts are exposed to the things of this world, our opportunities to make it our own, to get the things of this world and all of its allure! Even if we do receive blessings – as many of us have – what do we do with those wonderful gifts our Father gives us? The past record doesn’t show what you and I would expect and God would expect us to have which is a deeper relationship with Him when we are blessed – here is what really happens as a lesson to us!

First: We are vulnerable when we are satiated. Let’s look at what God said through Hosea to the nation of Israel when it was receiving blessings and in a time of plenty.

Hosea 13:6 When they had pasture, they were filled;
They were filled and their heart was exalted;
Therefore they forgot Me.

The New International Version says:

NIV | ‎Ho 13:6 When I fed them, they were satisfied; when they were satisfied, they became proud; then they forgot me.

We lean on God when we have nothing else to hold onto and when God comes to our rescue and satisfies us. We praise Him for a period, then we are off doing our own thing, trusting ourselves because everything is fine again and we think we are in control. We focus on His benefits not on God Himself or our relationship with Him. We trivialize His love for us and our relationship and duty to that relationship with Him and the Word of God. We make our relationship with Him all about the blessings, and then take control and cut off our relationship with Him.

Deut 8:12-14 12 lest—when you have eaten and are full, and have built beautiful houses and dwell in them; 13 and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and your gold are multiplied, and all that you have is multiplied; 14 when your heart is lifted up, and you forget the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage;

Is this a good picture of our nation in this world? Oh yes, we are very rich so this message is applicable to us today!

The Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament defines the Hebrew word for forget as

As šākaḥ forget, ignore, wither.[1]

The world’s things and pulls cause us to ignore and let wither! Our interest is now pulled toward ourselves with all the blessings around us! But, in doing so we enter a life of fear and issues because we have chosen a path away from God and His love!

Isaiah 51:13 And you forget the Lord your Maker,
Who stretched out the heavens
And laid the foundations of the earth;
You have feared continually every day
Because of the fury of the oppressor,
When he has prepared to destroy.
And where is the fury of the oppressor?

Psalms 106:11-13 The waters covered their enemies;
There was not one of them left.
12 Then they believed His words;
They sang His praise.

13 They soon forgot His works;
They did not wait for His counsel,

As the Captive taken from Jerusalem during Daniels time sat by the river Chebar and were asked to play –

Psalm 137:5 If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
Let my right hand forget its skill!

The word forget here is the same one,  “Sakah”, used in Deuteronomy which can be translated “They felt that forgetting how to play, letting their hand become lame, wither and useless”. Forgetting God means our reciprocal relationship with Him is lame, withered and useless. His Love for us – as God never forgets us- is not returned to Him.

So, our first caution is to watch ourselves in times of plenty. Be circumspect – pride is the enemy. Protect our hearts and relationship with God and Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit.

Living in Plenty – This may be a fleeting moment so we have to be alert as to how it affects us! It’s about our want to control our outcomes in life through our actions and not relying on God because He doesn’t do it the way we want. He wants a relationship with us and we get caught in the weeds of wanting specific solutions but rebelling against following God’s rules. These drives are in us and we have to be cautious to not listen to them.

Let’s move on to the Second pull on our hearts:

Second: Impatience and using your own resources to make things happen instead of responding to God’s call and waiting on Him.  

To avoid this we need Faith, Peace and Patience in love focused on the Spirit.

Rom 8:5-6 5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. 6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

At the core of this is a humble state of mind that listens to the word of God and His wisdom and acts on it following His direction and consistently following the Law. It protects that relationship, realizing it is the source of peace and health to a person’s whole being. We must be true in our relationship to God through the Holy Spirit. We cannot violate our true love. We should pray and hope for our heart to be pure.

1Tim 1:5  Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith,

Prov 4:23 Keep your heart with all diligence,
For out of it spring the issues of life.

1John 3:2-32 Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. 3 And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.

So now have two things to be aware of

1. Watch ourselves in times of plenty that we have a pure heart.
2. Impatience leads to using our own special talents to MAKE things we want happen. It goes beyond just working for it. It is pushing it as your own personal agenda. We must let God open the doors and help us.

Phillip 3:9-11 9 and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; 10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, 11 if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.

So now we will look at a few instances where we can see these at work.

The first example is Uzziah’s blessings turned to pride.

2Chr 26:9-23

9 And Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at the Corner Gate, at the Valley Gate, and at the corner buttress of the wall; then he fortified them. 10 Also he built towers in the desert. He dug many wells, for he had much livestock, both in the lowlands and in the plains; he also had farmers and vinedressers in the mountains and in Carmel, for he loved the soil.

11 Moreover Uzziah had an army of fighting men who went out to war by companies, according to the number on their roll as prepared by Jeiel the scribe and Maaseiah the officer, under the hand of Hananiah, one of the king’s captains. 12 The total number of chief officers[d] of the mighty men of valor was two thousand six hundred. 13 And under their authority was an army of three hundred and seven thousand five hundred, that made war with mighty power, to help the king against the enemy. 14 Then Uzziah prepared for them, for the entire army, shields, spears, helmets, body armor, bows, and slings to cast stones. 15 And he made devices in Jerusalem, invented by skillful men, to be on the towers and the corners, to shoot arrows and large stones. So his fame spread far and wide, for he was marvelously helped till he became strong.

The Penalty for Uzziah’s Pride

16 But when he was strong his heart was lifted up, to his destruction, for he transgressed against the Lord his God by entering the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense. 17 So Azariah the priest went in after him, and with him were eighty priests of the Lord—valiant men. 18 And they withstood King Uzziah, and said to him, “It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the Lord, but for the priests, the sons of Aaron, who are consecrated to burn incense. Get out of the sanctuary, for you have trespassed! You shall have no honor from the Lord God.”

Uzziah was on a personal mission, not God’s path.

19 Then Uzziah became furious; and he had a censer in his hand to burn incense. And while he was angry with the priests, leprosy broke out on his forehead, before the priests in the house of the Lord, beside the incense altar. 20 And Azariah the chief priest and all the priests looked at him, and there, on his forehead, he was leprous; so they thrust him out of that place. Indeed he also hurried to get out, because the Lord had struck him.

21 King Uzziah was a leper until the day of his death. He dwelt in an isolated house, because he was a leper; for he was cut off from the house of the Lord. Then Jotham his son was over the king’s house, judging the people of the land

You see, his heart was lifted by his years of success and strength given to him by God. This gave him pride in this world’s accomplishments.

He “felt” in his heart that he could enter the temple and burn incense- you read the result. We can learn that no matter how blessed God makes us, it doesn’t give us authority to step beyond our station in life, to break our humble relationship with God to exalt ourselves – and not even see it.

Uzziah was king but not priest. Here we can see he lost his relationship with God BEFORE this ever happened that his mind could think of doing such a thing which was illegal – Always remember the premise of the 10th Commandment. You covet something you don’t have the right to have. And in this case Uzziah tried to take it for his own reasons, not God’s.

So let’s move to the next example and a famous one, that of King Nebuchadnezzar who’s heart took credit for what God had given him, and took pride of the world’s achievements

Dan 4:28-33 28 All this came upon King Nebuchadnezzar. 29 At the end of the twelve months he was walking about the royal palace of Babylon. 30 The king spoke, saying, “Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for a royal dwelling by my mighty power and for the honor of my majesty?”

31 While the word was still in the king’s mouth, a voice fell from heaven: “King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is spoken: the kingdom has departed from you! 32 And they shall drive you from men, and your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. They shall make you eat grass like oxen; and seven times shall pass over you, until you know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He chooses.”

33 That very hour the word was fulfilled concerning Nebuchadnezzar; he was driven from men and ate grass like oxen; his body was wet with the dew of heaven till his hair had grown like eagles’ feathers and his nails like birds’ claws.

Here we see that when someone is greatly blessed by God they need to carry a humble heart that exalts God, not the works of their hands. All good comes from God.

Our third Category is: What is your treasure in life?

Matt 6:19-21 Lay Up Treasures in Heaven

19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Is God’s truth motivating us? Are we avoiding the pulls of this world asking us to chase after their ways so we can live like them?

Luke 12:15-21 15 And He said to them, “Take heed and beware of covetousness,[a] for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.”

16 Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. 17 And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ 18 So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.”’ 20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’

21 “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”

Are we building God’s House or our own? What do we invest our energies into?

Ezek 33:30-32 30 “As for you, son of man, the children of your people are talking about you beside the walls and in the doors of the houses; and they speak to one another, everyone saying to his brother, ‘Please come and hear what the word is that comes from the Lord.’ 31 So they come to you as people do, they sit before you as My people, and they hear your words, but they do not do them; for with their mouth they show much love, but their hearts pursue their own gain. 32 Indeed you are to them as a very lovely song of one who has a pleasant voice and can play well on an instrument; for they hear your words, but they do not do them.

Are we building God’s house or our own?

David said:

Psalm 139:17 How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!
How great is the sum of them!

1Chr 28:99 “As for you, my son Solomon, know the God of your father, and serve Him with a loyal heart and with a willing mind; for the Lord searches all hearts and understands all the intent of the thoughts. If you seek Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will cast you off forever.

Pr 5:21 For the ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord,
And He ponders all his paths.

We are to walk with God in His ways. In New Testament times, Jesus Christ’s followers were called followers of the “WAY”, the Way of Jesus Christ. The actual term “Christian” didn’t come until much later.

2Peter 1:2-42 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, 3 as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, 4 by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

2Cor 4:6-76 For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Eph 4:24 24 and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.

The new man does this to keep his heart on the right path”

1) Watch ourselves in times of plenty that we have a pure heart.

2) Patience travels Gods ways, not our own.

3) Build God’s treasures.

As we prepare for Passover, please remember these things and don’t forget God the Father and Jesus Christ – And Remember…

Gal 2:20 20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

 

[1] Hamilton, V. P. (1999). 2383 שָׁכַח. R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer Jr., & B. K. Waltke (Eds.), Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (electronic ed., p. 922). Chicago: Moody Press.