|
"...Shepherd the flock of God which is among
you, serving as overseers..." (1 Peter 5:2)
Elders
Morris Bass, Rick Holt , Joe
Price |
"...let them serve as deacons,
being found blameless..." (1 Tim. 3:10)
Deacons
Aaron Bass, Rich Brooks, Mike Finn
John Hague, Dan Head |
"And take...the sword of
the Spirit, which is the word of God" (Eph. 6:17)
In this issue:
Putting Our Hand to
the Plow - Luke 9:57-62 (Chris Simmons)
Sermon Outlines:
Putting Our Hand
to the Plow - Luke 9:57-62
Chris Simmons
“And as they were going along the
road, someone said to Him, ‘I will follow You wherever You go.’ And Jesus
said to him, ‘The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests, but
the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.’ And He said to another, ‘Follow
Me.’ But he said, ‘Permit me first to go and bury my father.’ But He
said to him, ‘Allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go and
proclaim everywhere the kingdom of God.’ And another also said, ‘I will
follow You, Lord; but first permit me to say good-bye to those at
home.’ But Jesus said to him, ‘No one, after putting his hand to the plow
and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God’” (Luke 9:57-62). Though
many have and continue to seek to be disciples of Jesus, Christ teaches here
that to be a “follower” requires that one be willing to make sacrifices
(“…nowhere to lay His head…”), and make the choice to put Christ above all
else in their life (“…allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you,
go and proclaim…”). In addition, Christ makes the simple point that His
disciples must be committed and dedicated in their service to Him when He
said, “no one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit
for the kingdom of God.” But what does it mean, in spiritual terms, to “put
our hand to the plow”?
To “put our hand to the plow” is
a proverbial expression of the decision to undertake any particular endeavor
or task. If a farmer makes the decision to commit a portion of his land to
grow a crop, he will then “put his hand to the plow” which is indicative of
his commitment to the endeavor of farming. Once the hand is upon the plow,
there is no turning back. The commitment has been made and he must be
undeterred until the fruition of the harvest. In similar fashion, the
spiritual application is of one who makes the decision to obey the gospel
and follow Christ. The commitment has been made and he also must be
undeterred until the course is finished (cf., II Timothy 4:8). Once the hand
is upon the plow, spiritually, there is no turning back. Involved in the
concept of “putting your hand to the plow” are two issues: dedication
and commitment.
The idea of dedication
is the idea of a singular focus. Following Israel’s great sin of idolatry in
the wilderness, Moses charged those who stood for the Lord to “dedicate
yourselves today to the LORD – for every man has been against his son
and against his brother – in order that He may bestow a blessing upon you
today” (Exodus 32:29). They were to take their stand against the sin in the
camp by fulfilling God’s commands through Moses even though it may cost them
those that they love. The Israelites’ loyalty could not be divided and
neither can ours. Our relationship with God as Christians must have a
singular focus as well. Paul spoke of his dedication and singular focus
in Philippians 3:13-14, “Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid
hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and
reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the
prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus”. Dedication includes the
idea of adjusted priorities in our lives. One who obeys the gospel
must continue to “seek first His kingdom and His righteousness” (Matthew
6:33). No longer can our fleshly relations be the priority of our lives.
Jesus said, “If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and
mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own
life, he cannot be My disciple” (Luke 14:26). Also, dedication speaks of
sacrifices that must be made. In the same context of Luke chapter 14,
Jesus went on to say, “Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after
Me cannot be My disciple…So therefore, no one of you can be My disciple who
does not give up all his own possessions” (Luke 14:27, 33). We sacrifice
daily all else for that which we are dedicated to (Romans 12:1-2). They are
spiritual sacrifices (I Peter 2:5) that include our praise and spiritual
service (Hebrews 13:15-16), as well as our time and physical blessings
(Philippians 4:14-18). Indeed, our dedication to God will cost us (Luke
14:28) and we can measure our dedication by what we are willing to
sacrifice.
The other aspect of “putting
our hand to the plow” is that of commitment.
Commitment speaks of uncompromising determination and resolve. The farmer
who quits because it didn’t rain as it should have, or there were too many
rocks in the way, or because of some form of blight or pestilence, or simply
a lack of interest, was not truly committed and had not truly “put his hand
to the plow.” Likewise, the child of God who quits because of some form of
persecution, mistreatment by others, or distraction by the cares of this
world (cf., Matthew 13:20-22) or a lack of interest has not committed him or
herself to the Lord, nor have they in truth, “put their hand to the plow.”
Those who are committed to the Lord are those who are unwilling to quit or
turn back until we reach the goal, regardless of the consequences. We see a
lack of commitment exemplified in the Israelites from the time they left
their bondage in Egypt as they journeyed to the promised land. Their lack of
commitment to reach their goal was repeatedly demonstrated in their outcries
to Moses expressing a desire to return to bondage in Egypt (Exodus 14:11-12;
16:3; 17:3; Numbers 11:4-5; 14:1-4).
We read in Acts 7:39, “And our
fathers were unwilling to be obedient to him, but repudiated him and in
their hearts turned back to Egypt.” In contrast, we read of Isaiah who
expressed his commitment when he said in Isaiah 50:5, “The Lord GOD has
opened My ear; And I was not disobedient, Nor did I turn back” (cf.,
Galatians 4:9).
What is it that we are to
dedicate or commit in our lives? We are to dedicate and commit our time to
God. Matthew 6:33 and our responsibility to seek God first has a direct
application to how we spend our time. Would an unbiased observer look at how
we spend the time of our days and conclude that we seek to put God and His
kingdom first in our lives? Are we making the most of our time for the cause
of Christ (cf., Ephesians 5:16)? We are to dedicate and commit our physical
blessings to God. Again, what comes first? Do we allocate our financial
resources to our recreation, entertainment or other personal pleasure and
give to God what is left over (cf., Malachi 1:8)? Or what about our talents,
abilities and our energy? Have we committed them to God or do we exhaust
them for personal purposes and neglect to use them to His glory?
“Putting our hand to the plow” is
to literally give our lives to God. It should impress us what is said of the
brethren of the churches in Macedonia by Paul, “For I testify that according
to their ability, and beyond their ability they gave of their own accord,
begging us with much entreaty for the favor of participation in the support
of the saints, and this, not as we had expected, but they first gave
themselves to the Lord and to us by the will of God” (II Corinthians
8:3-5).
http://home.att.net/~fifth.street/Bulletin_5-23-04.htm
Top
You can find the
complete outline of this sermon at
BIBLE ANSWERS
KEEP YOUR EYES ON…
Scripture Reading:
John 9:35-41
1. Jno. 9 – Relate healing of
the blind man.
2. Jno. 9:35-41 – Healing physical sight typical of healing spiritual
blindness.
3. Eph. 1:18 – The eyes of our hearts must be enlightened with truth (Matt.
13:13, 15).
I. KEEP YOUR EYES ON JESUS
– Heb. 12:1-2.
A. As the Leader of the (our)
Faith – 12:2; Acts 3:15; Heb. 2:10.
B. As the Completion of the (our) Faith – 12:2; Eph. 1:10; cf. Gal. 3:1;
Jno. 8:12; 1 Pet. 2:21.
C. In Times of Temptation – (Heb. 12:1-4);
Heb. 4:14-16; Psa. 123:1-4 (121:1-2; 141:8-10).
II. KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE CROSS
– Heb.12:2.
A. Only Hope of our Salvation
– Col. 1:20; 1 Pet. 2:24; 1 Cor. 1:17-18; 2:2.
B. As our Motive for Service & Sacrifice – Matt. 26:39, 42 (Phil. 2:7-8);
Matt. 10:38; 16:24.
III. KEEP YOUR EYES ON HEAVEN
– Heb. 12:2; 2 Pet. 3:13.
A. Keep Your Eyes on Heaven’s
Purity – Rev. 21:27; 2 Pet. 3:14; 1 Pet. 1:4; 2 Cor. 7:1.
B. Keep Your Eyes on the Heavenly Reward – Heb. 12:2; cf. Rev. 3:21; Col.
3:4; 2 Tim. 4:8; Phil. 3:20-21; 1 Jno. 3:2.
Conclusion
1. Jesus came so that those
who do not see might have sight (Jno. 9:39).
2. Focus our eyes on Jesus, the cross & heaven (Heb. 12:1-2).
Top
You can find the
complete outline of this sermon at
BIBLE ANSWERS
ZEAL
Scripture Reading:
John 2:13-22
Zeal (zelos) is
“excitement of (the) mind, ardor, fervor of spirit…in embracing, pursuing,
defending anything”; from zeo, “to boil with heat, be hot”.
I.
MISPLACED ZEAL.
A. Zeal
without Knowledge – Rom. 10:1-3; Acts 22:3-5; Phil. 3:6; 1 Tim. 1:13.
B. Zeal for the Traditions of Men – Gal. 1:14 (cf. Mk. 7:1-13); Col. 2:8.
C. Zeal that is Selfish & Self-serving – cf. Rom. 12:11; cf. Gal. 4:17;
6:12-13.
II.
GOD-APPROVED ZEAL:
A.
Harmonizes with the Divine Will – Num. 25:6-11 (Rom. 10:2); Phinehas, Psa.
106:30.
B. Directed toward God, not Men – cf. Num. 25:11-13; Matt. 7:21-23 (Rom.
12:11).
C. Directed toward “Good Things” at all Times – Gal. 4:18; Phil. 2:12
(Col. 3:22-25); (Heb. 13:21; 2 Tim. 3:16-17); Tit. 2:14.
D. Works & Prays for the Spiritual Well-being of Others – Col. 4:13; 2
Cor. 9:2; Jno. 2:13-17; 1 Kgs. 19:10, 14; Phil. 3:6."
E. Grows out of Genuine Conversion – 2 Cor. 7:11; cf. Gal. 2:20.
-Examples: Acts 2:41-47; 8:39; 19:17-20.
III. THE
ZEAL OF THE LORD.
A. Our
Lord is Zealous of Righteousness – Num. 25:11-13.
B. Our Lord Zealously Accomplishes His Purposes – cf. Isa. 9:6-7.
Conclusion: Zeal w/o
knowledge leads to self-righteousness; Zeal with knowledge leads to fervent
& faithful service.
Top
|
