WHO CONTROLS NATURE?

Introduction: We had one of the most unusual February in the History of Boston. With record breaking snow fall levels and chilling temperatures New Englanders have been literally “slammed” in their faces. It was interesting to note that as the temperatures fell at times below Zero, the tempers of people rose to hysterical levels on the roads, in parking places, in the streets and not to mention in homes as well. These epic level storms are bringing out the “good, the bad and the ugly in people including among Christians. They exposed the inefficiencies in the administration when it comes to dealing with catastrophic level emergencies.

The MBTA stood still, the vibrant Bostonian night life took a knockout punch; the businesses were hard hit (for certain businesses snow became the “white Gold”) Last Sunday’s blizzard tested even the most dedicated churchgoers, as many churches closed their services. When you observe all this “Snow Mania” what goes through your mind? One cannot but wonder what has come of the most resilient people; the Bostonians who takes pride in their success, championships, and a bid for 2024 Olympics. What is coming of the city that boasts of being “BOSTON STRONG” and all of a sudden it seems like as if we are plunged right back into an “ICE AGE”  

Are we really that strong and resilient? These two credentials have been put to a severe test in the past weeks. It appears to me that we are coming to terms with nature’s fury. It is proving to us after all that we are not that strong to handle these epic level storms. Are these merely nature’s out of whack phenomenon or God’s warning signs that we need to pay close attention to? Who actually owns nature? Who controls nature?

The meteorologists, the media and the government talk and act like as if they do, but are they? The world is spinning as it should because someone else is controlling it and He does what He wishes to do. In order to find out who really controls the weather we will turn to the ancient scriptures. Nowadays we have so much advanced technology with which you can track the path, the intensity and possibly the impact of the storm before it even occurs. But with all the technology we have lost our senses of owe, wonder and appreciation for the supernatural. 

Marva Dawn laments, “If there is anything missing in our technicized culture it is wonder.” Isn’t it true? We no longer wonder over what our forefathers had wondered about?  I wonder what they would have thought had they seen this amount of snow all at once.  I want us to go even back in time to see how people viewed these natural calamities. Let the scriptures speak:

DOES NATURE KNOW WHO CONTROLS IT? (Scriptures say a lot about snow)

1. “The Lord will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands.” Deuteronomy 28:12

2. “The Lord does whatever pleases him, in the heavens and on the earth, in the seas and all their depths. He makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth; he sends lightning with the rain and brings out the wind from his storehouses.” Psalm 135: 6-7

3. “When he thunders, the waters in the heavens roar; he makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth. He sends lightning with the rain and brings out the wind from his storehouses.”  Jer 51:16

4. He says to the snow, “Fall on the earth,’ and to the rain shower, ‘Be a mighty downpour.’ Job 37:6

5. “Have you entered the storehouses of the snow or seen the storehouses of the hail, which I reserve for times of trouble, for days of war and battle? Job 38:22-23

6.  “He spreads the snow like wool and scatters the frost like ashes.” Psalm 147:16

7. “Lightning and hail, snow and clouds, Stormy winds that do his bidding,” Psalm 148:8            

Just like today life went on even on a snowy day.  “Benaiah son of Jehoiada, a valiant fighter from Kabzeel, performed great exploits. He struck down Moab’s two mightiest warriors. He also went down into a pit on a snowy day and killed a lion.” 2 Chronicles 11:22

Though we see all these scriptures clearly stating that God is the one who is in control of the nature just like today at times God’s people did not pay close attention to what He was trying to say to them through nature.  But at times it was the ungodly, the heathen who wondered about the power of God over nature.  The story of Jonah shows how the heathen were afraid.

Jonah 1^st chapter. Jonah thought that he could run away from God. He bought his way to go to Tarshish. Vs 4, “The LORD hurled a great wind on the sea and there was a great storm on the sea so that the ship was about to break up.”  The sailors tries their best to get the ship under control, they were simply afraid and began to cry out to their god. But our friend Jonah was fast asleep. They came up to him and asked him, where do you come from, what do you do, what is your country, from what people are you?

Jonah said, “I am a Hebrew and I fear the LORD, (really?) God of heaven who made the sea and the dry land.” Upon hearing, the men were extremely frightened. They tried even harder to keep the ship from sinking. Vs 14, Then they cried out to the Lord, “Please, Lord, do not let us die for taking this man’s life. Do not hold us accountable for killing an innocent man, for you, Lord, have done as you pleased.”

They picked Jonah up and threw him into the sea, and the sea stopped its raging. Vs 16, “At this the men greatly feared the Lord, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord and made vows to him.” I wonder how many people these days would have such fear of God when they encounter such similar experience. They might be quick to explain it away through science or some other logic. But the ancients approached these natural, catastrophes differently; many exhibited awe of God, who created the heavens and the earth and rules it by His power.

I would like us to see how awesome our God is. Let’s restore the wonder that has been sadly lost by the advance of science and technology. Our God is beyond all description. By His word he created everything and by his hand He sustains everything. He knows the names of all the stars in the galaxies; he calls them one by one and they obey him.  The wind and the rain and the snow is subject to him and he uses them for his purposes. The whole nature is subject to Him.

Deuteronomy 33:26, “There is no one like the God of Jeshurun, who rides across the heavens to help you and on the clouds in his majesty.” Last week I have encouraged us to cry out to the LORD, and several of you did, and that mighty God came to our rescue and we are having a service today. Not only in times of trouble but in all areas of our lives God is waiting to get involved, the question is will you let him have full control of your life?

Next time when you are overwhelmed by situations that are beyond your control, think of the one who is really in control of everything. In conclusion what should be our response to such an awesome God? Let’s see what the Psalmist has to say in Psalm 95 “Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker; for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care.” Amen

UNTO THE MOUNTAINS: A MEDITATION ON PSALM 121

           A story is told of a man who one day in his youth found a gold coin on the street. Ever after this- he kept his eyes on the ground as he walked watching for coins. During a long life time, he found a good amount of coins but mean while he never saw the flowers and the trees, which grew in such wondrous beauty everywhere, he never saw the hills, the mountains and the sweet valleys, the picturesque landscapes; he never saw the blue skies, and the birds flying. To him this fair world meant only a dusty, dreary roads and odd places to look for coins.  What wasted years of existence without enjoying the beauty of the world?

            

            This really is the story of the life of most people. They never lift their eyes off the earth. They live only to gather money, to acquire property; or to scheme for power or to live for pleasure. They never lift up their eyes to the hills. There is no blue sky in their lives. They never cherish heavenly visions. They are absolutely without God in this world.

J. R Miller in his book Unto the Hills, notes, “Not many of us are living at our best.  We linger in the low lands because we are afraid to climb into the mountains. The steepness and ruggedness dismay us- so we stay in the misty valleys and do not learn the mystery of the mountains. We do not know what we lose, in our self-indulgence. We do not know what glory awaits us if only we had courage for the mountain climb, what blessing we would find, if only we would move to the uplands of God.”[1] Are you simply lingering on the peripheries of Christian life or dissatisfied with your mediocre existence and longing for new heights? 

As we are nearing the end of 2014, God is inviting us to come unto the mountains in the year 2015. For some the past year may have been like living in a valley, however God wants to turn that into a mountain top experience like he did with Moses. Come away unto the mountains where he has something to teach you. We would be well off to look at Psalm 121 and learn from those ancient Jewish pilgrims as thy journeyed towards Jerusalem. Let’s read Psalm 121.

BACKGROUND TO PSALM 121.

Psalm 121 is one of the fifteen psalms called “Songs of Degrees or Songs of Ascents” They were probably sung by the pilgrims as they went up to Jerusalem. This particular psalm was sung by the caravans when on the evening before entering the holy city, they encamped within sight of the mountains that made a wall round about Jerusalem. The sight of the mountains gave the pilgrims great joy, for it told them that close beneath those hill-tops nestled the city which they loved so much, with its temple of marble and gold in which God dwelt. 

More on a personal note, Psalm 121 became one of my favorites Psalm as it was often read by my father whenever his children were making a trip away from home. It gave us such assurance to know that God would go with us on our journey and keep us safe throughout and would someday bring us back home. Let me break down this Psalm for us. This Psalm contains only eight verses and carries three profound themes. Vs 1-2 Talks about God’s sovereignty. Vs3-4 talks about God’s keeping. Vs 5-8 talks about God’s protection.

I. GOD’S SOVEREIGNTY (Vs 1-2)

Vs 1-2, “I lift up my eyes to the hills where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the maker of heaven and earth.  The NASB translates, “I will lift up my eyes to the mountains.” I would like to spend a few minutes talking about mountains, and what role they play in our lives.

Mountains are fascinating. In my personal spiritual life mountains and hills have a great impact. I grew up in a region that boasts to have the top five tallest mountains in the world including Mount Everest. The city of Hyderabad where I ministered most of my time is 1,776 feet above the sea level, surrounded by several hills.  We lived in a place called Mahendra Hills. So naturally, those hills became one of my favorite destinations in the mornings for my quiet time and prayer. This is where I learned most of my faith lessons and practiced my spiritual lessons of trust, spiritual warfare, waiting on God, giving up rights, contentment and patience.

In the ancient times mountains had a remarkable influence on the minds of people. They played a large role in the Bible story. For example: After the flood the Ark of Noah rested upon the mountains of Ararat (Gen 8:4) Abraham’s faith was tested when he offered his only son Isaac on the mountain Moriah. Till today “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.” On Mount Moriah that the temple was built. On Mount Sinai God gave the law to Moses.

Mountains and hills played a crucial role in the life and ministry of Jesus. After spending a whole night on a mountain he chose his twelve disciples. It was on a mountain Jesus delivered His famous speech of “The Beatitudes” On Mount Hermon Jesus was transfigured. He was crucified on a hill called Golgotha. On a mountain in Galilee he gave the great commission to his disciples to go and make disciples of all nations. It is noted in the gospels that Jesus used to withdraw himself alone into the mountains to be with His father.

The Mount of Olives was where he stood last as he ascended to heaven. One day, on the day of his return, the scripture tells us in Zechariah 14:4, “And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives which is in front of Jerusalem on the east and the Mount of Olives will be split.” What a glorious day that would be for all those who are waiting for His return. It would be beneficial to do a word study on “The Mountains” in the Bible.

Coming back to our passage. The sight of a hill or mountain made devout Jews think of God.  That was the thought behind these two verses, “I lift up my eyes to the mountains where else my help comes from, my help comes from the maker of heaven and earth.” The Hebrew word “Nasa” occurs more than 650 times in the OT. Which means, “to raise, to lift up (the face, the eyes, the voice, or the soul).

Lifting up his eyes to the mountains the Psalmist was reminded of God’s sovereignty and his righteousness as it was compared to a mighty mountain in Psalm 36:6.The Mountains were symbols of God’s everlasting love. They were meant to bring peace, and provide refuge in times of trouble. King David fled to the mountains numerous times when he was haunted by his enemies.  In Psalm 55:6 he exhorts the haunted soul to flee like a bird to its mountain.

Mountains also represent obstacles we face in life, in the line of pursuing God. Jesus exhorts us to speak to those mountains by faith and they will be removed from our path (Mark 11:23) God credits, how beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news on the mountains. All in all the mountains were an integral part in the lives of Israelites.  They not only reminded them of God’s greatness and glory but also God’s stern dealings with them as a nation whenever they turned their backs away from Him. The Psalmist when he was in trouble, did not look to people for help but lifted his eyes to the mountains for he knew from where he would get help. Where do you look when you are in trouble? Who do you turn to in times of sorrow? That brings us to the next theme in the Psalm which is God’s keeping.

II. GOD’S KEEPING (Vs 3-4)

Vs 3-4, “He will not allow your foot to slip. He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold He who keeps Israel Will neither slumber nor sleep.” There is nothing more serious and fatal than slipping your foot while climbing a mountain especially a steep icy mountain. Modern day mountain climbing gear includes special boots. They are typically designed to be used with crampons. These special boots are life savers, they keep your foot from slipping.

In the spiritual life slipping of foot sometimes viewed as a type of misfortune. Once in India I was going up to my place on a bicycle. It was so steep I had to get down and push my bicycle. On the side of the hill I saw a path, I thought this would take me up to the top of the hill. So I got side tracked and got on to that path, but in the end instead of going up, I went down all the way to the bottom of the hill where I started. A hard lesson learned.

Similarly in our journey one wrong step or a misstep of faith can get us off track and make us fall down. But God’s care extends even to the feet of his children. He would not let our foot slip. Psalm 37:23-24, “The steps of a man are established by the LORD; and He delights in his way. When he falls, he shall not be hurled headlong; because the Lord is the One who holds his hand (he sustains him with his hand.) This scripture does not guarantee us that we would never fall, but when we fall we fall into the safest and strongest hands of God that hold us firmly.

No doubt, there are many dangers on the path of God’s children, but those who look to the mountains will not be overwhelmed by them because God keeps his foot from slipping. But those who look to people do not come under God’s keeping. So the safest place to look is unto the Mountains. This brings us to the third theme; protection.

III. GOD’S PROTECTION: (Vs 5-8)

Vs 5-8 “The Lord watches over you— the Lord is your shade at your right hand; the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all harm— he will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.” These few verses explain the overall protection of God of His children. It touches all aspects and covers all dimensions and all stages of life.

It is a life time protection from all the known and the unknown dangers. It is better than the ADT protection the companies seem to provide; because it doesn't cost God’s children anything except trusting in his care and protection. These scriptures promise us God’s daily protection, not only today but all the days of our lives. God promises not just to protect us from some but from all evil. You may be wondering Pastor, we are not surrounded by mountains like the Israelites did so where can we go when you say “Unto the Mountains”? Well we don’t have to run to a literal mountain, God becomes our mountain through Jesus.

We can reach God through Jesus and by coming to His Church.  Paul writing to the Hebrews reminds them of this fact. Hebrews 12:22-24, “But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.”

In conclusion, lifting our eyes unto the mountain is in essence lifting our eyes to God. We can only reach God through Jesus who said, “I am the way the truth and the life and no one comes to the father except through me. If you want your 2015 to be a year of fruitfulness, and successful, come to Jesus.  Surrender your life to Him. Let Him hold all the things that hold you, let him have all your pain and He will satisfy your soul   with good things.  My question to you is; have you lifted your eyes Unto the Mountains, where on top Christ is standing with his arms wide open to receive you and fill you with His peace and abundant love? Amen

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[1] Unto the Hills, J.R Miller, Page 10

YOUR PLACE ON GOD'S DREAM TEAM II (Romans 12:4-8)

This Sunday marks the beginning of the Advent season. It is the time when we focus on Christ coming to the world. God had a plan to redeem His people. He declared His plan to His prophets over the centuries and is fulfilling His Word even now. Advent is a beautiful season of reflection and anticipation. In our quitter moments, we sometimes are confronted with two questions: What have I done with my life? and What will I do with the rest of my life? These questions are not so much in regards to the details of life, what jobs we had, where we lived or what our college roommate will be like next year or who will we marry. Rather, we ask them in search of the significant purpose of our lives.

Advent is a time for asking the big questions of life, though this season tends to crowd out the quiet spaces, making us tired and worn out, and leaving us no room for reflection, let’s try to make room for some reflection. When you do find such time; ask this one big question of your life. What is God’s plan for me personally? Where do I fit in God’s overall purpose?

Two weeks ago we started talking about finding, “Your Place on God’s Dream Team.” I shared about how to assess our true potential, in order to know our true potential we need to employ sober judgment from Romans 12:1-3, Paul exhorted the Roman believers saying, “As your spiritual teacher I give this piece of advice to each one of you. Don’t cherish exaggerated ideas of yourself or your importance, but try to have a sane estimate of your capabilities by the light of the faith that God has given to you all.” J.B Philips. We learned that sober judgment means to have a sane estimation of our gifts, capabilities and weaknesses. Which means not to overestimate or under estimate our gifts, instead we take a realistic view of ourselves. After exhorting the believers not to have an elevated view of oneself, he compares human body, to church the body of Christ, whose head is the Lord Jesus himself.

I. MANY PARTS BUT ONE BODY (Vs 4-5)         

“For as in one physical body we have many parts (organs, members) and all of these parts do not have the same function or use, So we, numerous as we are, are one body in Christ (the Messiah) and individually we are parts one of another (mutually dependent on one another) (AMP). The scriptures tell us that we are fearfully and wonderfully made.  The human body is a complete wonder. Here are a couple of facts about the human body:

The human body is estimated to have 60,000 miles of blood vessels. To put that in perspective, the distance around the earth is about 25,000 miles, making the distance your blood vessels could travel if laid end to end more than two times around the earth. Nerve impulses to and from the brain travel as fast as 170 miles per hour. Ever wonder how you can react so fast to things around you or why that stubbed toe hurts right away? It’s due to the super speedy movement of nerve impulses from your brain to the rest of your body and vice versa, bringing reactions at the speed of a high powered luxury sports car.[1]

In our passage in Romans 12: 4-5, the Apostle Paul uses the graphic example of the human body. Why human body? There are three points from this analogy we can observe. First, the body represents completeness, a whole, a totality but a totality made up of different parts. Similarly, we who make up the body of Christ have different functions. We are not all the same. We are gifted in different ways. Just as the physical body needs hands, feet, ears and eyes to enable it to function properly, so the body of Christ needs those with different gifts to enable it to function properly. We are to have unity through diversity. Isn't it wonderful to know that we all don’t have to behave just alike? It is perfectly OK to be different.

Secondly, we see in this analogy we don’t have to do it all by ourselves.” We do our part and we will let others do their part. In the end together we will get the job done. Together we will do the work of the ministry for the Lord.  Thirdly Paul emphasizes our mutual dependence in the Body of Christ. We really need each other. No member of Christ’s body can go off on a desert island and be a victorious Christian all by herself. God has purposefully made us so that we are incomplete without the ministry of other brothers and sisters in the Body of Christ.

It is important to recognize that it is God who has arranged all the body parts as he saw it fit in our physical body. Similarly God has placed different members in the body of Christ and blessed them with different gifts. Though we are individually separated from each other spiritually we are all interconnected and interdependent of one another. Let’s look at what those various gifts are and how each of those gifts corresponds to a part of the physical body.

II. DIVERSE GIFTS BUT ONE GIVER (Vs 6-8)

We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.  We see in this passage seven different gifts mentioned:  1. Prophecy (perceiver) 2. Server. 3 Teacher. 4. Exhorter (encouragement) 5. Giver 6. Leader (Administration) 7. Compassion person. Don & Katie Fortune in their book “Discovering Your God given gifts.” compares these seven gifts to seven part of human body. Perceiver (the eye of the body). Server (the hands of the body).Teacher (the mind of the body). Exhorter (the mouth of the body). Giver (the arms of the body). Leader/Administration (the shoulders of the body). Compassion person: (the heart of the body).[2] 

Let’s take a moment and identify where your place might be in the body of Christ; God’s Dream team! Whatever place you might find yourself in that is a very important place.We can put all these seven gifts into two broad categories. I Peter 4:10-11 “Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. 11 If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen. 

According to this scripture there are two basic categories of gifts: the speaking gifts and serving gifts.The first four gifts (Teacher, Perceiver, Exhorter, and Leader) can be placed under speaking gifts. The other three (Compassion Person, Giver and Server) can be placed under serving gifts. If we look around in our church each of us can either fall into one of the two categories. But it doesn't really matter which category you may fall into, the bottom line of these gifts is that they were not meant for ourselves but to use them to serve others. How do we do that? We do it cheerfully and by the strength God gives us so that in everything God may be praised through Jesus Christ. When we all faithfully function to our fullest potential; our church body will become healthier and more productive for God’s glory.

Let’s pause for a while and reflect on our own lives! Have we recognized the gifts that God has given us? If so how have we used those gifts, did we use them to serve others? Have we become the dispensers of God’s grace through our gifts? Have we brought glory to God through our gifts? Remember; whatever gift you may have received you did not deserve it; God gave it to you out of His own will; so that none of us can boast about our gifts. He gave those gifts so that we might work together in building His Kingdom in Quincy and beyond.

In closing, there are different members in the body empowered with different gifts by the same God who freely chose to give those gifts to us. The purpose of gifts has always been will always meant to be for serving one another and building up of the body of Christ. God desires that we all grow up, become mature and become men and women, by attaining the fullness of Christ and the completeness found in Him.  Let’s be clear on one thing; none of us can attain to that stature all by ourselves; we need each other in the body of Christ. We all are connected to the rest of the Body of Christ; God’s dream Team.

This morning before you leave this service, I want you to understand that God has a plan God has a plan for you and a place for you in His Dream Team. Don’t settle for less than what God has for you. Do you realize that you are part of a Championship Team? You are a part of His Body on earth, in other words you represent Him. You actually become His Hands, His Feet, His voice, His heart, His Eyes and His healing agent wherever you are, whoever you talk too…. What an awesome responsibility to know God’s plan and our part on His Dream Team. Amen

           

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[1] http://www.lifesmith.com/VHS%20Web/humanbody.html

[2] Don & Katie Fortune, “Discovering your God Given Gifts”, page 37