It is my usual style as a preacher to
begin with some light stuff. Today, allow me to begin hitting the
rock, and touch the
hot surface of the reality of life especially of the Christian
life. These are the words: Doing good things does not
automatically turn us into good people I’m getting an impression
that we were not brought up thinking this way. Instead, we were taught
that doing the good things we should do would automatically turn us into
good people. I’m getting an impression that we were not brought up
thinking this way. Instead, we were taught that doing the good things
we should do would automatically turn us into good people. In case
you can’t still accept this hard saying, allow me to read Matthew 23:15,
23:
Woe to you, teachers, of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites!
You travel over land
to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him
twice as much a son of hell as you are.
Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites!
You give a tenth of your spices--
mint, dill, and cummin. But you have neglected the more
important matters of the law--justice,
mercy, and faithfulness. You should have practiced the
latter, without rejecting the former.
Have I proved to you enough that doing good things does not automatically
turn us into good people. Remember it is Jesus speaking these hard
sayings. So, we say spending hours in Bible study, witnessing regularly,
avoiding worldly amusements, and generously giving time and money to the
Lord’s work are godly things to do (and should be done), but (be aware)
that they are not sufficient in themselves to produce deep change.
B. You have heard about the hard sayings. The next would
be an intriguing question: How come that we’re doing or accomplishing
good things and yet our lives are not turning automatically to become good
people? Let me offer you a quick, simple answer to that intriguing
question: Because we’re doing, accomplishing, and most especially
looking in all the wrong places!
The central problem is inside, within the heart. Where
are we looking at? What gets most of our attention? It’s the
order to our public world. Sad to say, our minds and orientations
were programmed to believe that when we have and we possess the elements
of the good life plus we manifest a Christian package of sincere commitment,
moral integrity, and church involvement, we should then avoid the feeling
that something is missing or something is wrong. The deceit is don’t let
anyone tell you that something is wrong or is missing when you are experiencing
personal comfort and manifesting spiritual commitment. The
personal comfort and spiritual commitment are not the determining factors
that should tell us that deep, real, and genuine change are taking place
inside our hearts for there is still a big possibility that we’re looking
in all wrong directions. What’s the main things that should be exposed?
Read with me Matthew 23:25-28 Verse 28 is giving us a strong warning
when we are looking in all wrong directions and exposing the wrong spots:
On the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the outside you
are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.
C. Why is the rearranging to our public world is given a priority
more than the arranging of our private world (Our heart)? Why “appearing
to people as righteous” gets most of our attention? Because of the
sin of self-protection. At least, this is the most revealing answer
to me. We focus on and love ourselves, build our own self-image at
the expense of sins against relationship. Does everything stop here
(the sin of self-protection)? I wish it would but unfortunately it
does not. That sin of self-protection or self-preservation leads
to the problem of (we will label here) demandingness. We demand people
to respond to our needs. When they don’t, the need of self-protection
is threatened. When people are not responding to our demands, we control.
We want to be in-charge. God begins to be out of the picture because
we want to be in-charge. We want our efforts to succeed. And
sin begins and progresses when creatures begin to occupy the place of the
Creator. And so it is required that we face our problem of demandingness
and the sin of self-protection if we want to experience change from the
inside-out. Let’s see how we can solve the problem of demandingness.
First,
I. How God views the problem of demandingness
The basic question here is why do things that we expect to happen
don’t happen? To answer this question, we need to remember the effects
of sin. Sin has its own effect on the whole creation that’s why Romans
8:22 says, “the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth.”
Sin has also affected the manner by which human being should function that
is, according to the design of His Creator. Since sin started to
affect the human race, many things in life and about life became abnormal.
Since then, man becomes attracted to himself at the expense of sins against
relationship.
Because of the sovereignty of God, He started using the great
and worst effect of sin that’s why we believe Romans 8:28. Because
of His sovereignty, we believe with all our heart “that in all things God
works for the good of those love him.” The problem with demandingness
is the fact that many times we don’t trust God that He can use the effects
of sin to make His people better and not bitter. Demandingness begins
when we begin looking at our lives based on our own perspective instead
of God’s perspective. Demandingness is making ourselves in control
or in-charge. When we want to control events and people, and results;
when we want to sit down when God was saying stand-up, God is then seeing
the problem of demandingness rooted from the sin of self-protection.
The classic biblical example of what we’re calling here demandingness is
none other than Job. What he said in Job 13:3 is an accurate example
of the problem of demandingness that is when Job thinks that He can
argue with God about the things that happen. That’s demandingness.
When we don’t think God is in control of everything even in bad scene.
II. How the problem of demandingness develops
We can say here at the very beginning that problem of demandingness
develops when our desire for relief becomes the strongest demand.
We want to say here that sometimes our desire for relief is wrong because
in God’s sovereignty and sovereign act, He could have been using a particular
event or pain or lost in order to make us better people; in order to change
us from inside-out. And therefore, to demand some other thing,
like desiring for problem-free life, when God is already working for the
good of those who trust Him, could be a sign of a strong distrust to what
God can do.
When Job was experiencing the deepest lostness, three of his
friends (Eliphaz, Bildad, & Zophar) visited him and encouraged him.
But their manner of encouraging Job was at the expense of God’s sovereign
power and control. Eliphaz spoke to Job (5:8). He encouraged
Job to find out the real reason why God is inflicting him that kind of
suffering. Once he learned the very reason, he could reverse things
and restore comfort. Job’s second friend, Bildad, was encouraging
him to plead with God with a pure heart for in that way, God will restore
things the way they should be (Job 8:5,6). Zophar was Job’s third
friend. His assumption was if Job had gotten rid of his sin, the Lord would
surely remove his shame. These are the ways or the systems which
make the problem of demandingness difficult to abolish. In a sense,
Job’s three friends were trying to tell him, “If you do this, then God
will give you that.” When we do this we are feeding, nourishing,
and even developing a demanding spirit.
In Job 23:1-7 (provided in your bulletin), our hero found out
that he cannot manipulate God by filling His mouth with arguments.
He should abolish his demanding spirit before God, never oppose God, for
He cannot be manipulated! He can only be obeyed!
III. What God does with a demanding spirit
Job was insisting and he believes that he has the right to demand
God what he thinks is best for him. In other words, he wanted to
argue with God his case.
What did God do when Job manifested a demanding spirit; when
Job wanted to be in control, God gave him what he was expecting--God
appeared and answered Job’s anguish. This is what Job 38-1-3 says.
Let’s read together. “Then the Lord answered Job out of the storm.
He said: “Who is this that darkens my counsel with words without
knowledge? Brace yourself like a man; I will question you,
and you shall answer me.” The demanding spirit of Job was giving
him an opportunity to be heard. And what did the demanding spirit
received or experience. Let’s pick it up in Job 38:4-5, 12, 19, &
21. “Where were you when I lad the earth’s foundation? Tell
me, if you understand. Who marked off its dimensions? Surely
you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it?” “Have you ever given
orders to the morning, or shown the dawn its place.” “What is the
way to the abode of light? And where does darkness reside?” “Surely
you know, for you were already born! You have lived so many years.”
Job was humiliated after God issued the challenge in Job 40:2, “Will
the one who contends with the Almighty correct him? Let him who accuses
God answer him!”
What had happened to a man who thought that he can argue his
case with God? In Job 40:4,5, “but I have no answer--but I will say
no more. What did God do to Job? God was changing him from
the inside-out by taking away his demanding spirit.
God continued to prune Job’s demanding spirit. Let’s read
Job 40:8. It says, “Would you discredit my justice? Would you
condemn me to justify yourself?” God is asking Job here about the
one who is in a position to determine what is right and wrong. It
is not Job who should determine how he should be treated especially when
things are so difficult to understand.
Conclusion:
The necessary foundation for any relationship with God is a recognition
that God is God and we are not. This will solve our problem of demandingness.
When that is solved, God will be able to work in us as freely as He would
desire if things will accomplish His purpose.