These are both true stories:
Years ago I was called to the home of a widow whose
daughter was the apple of her eye. When the child was 3 years old she became
very ill, and the doctors said that she would die. We can all understand the
shock of this news, but we cannot justify the mother’s reaction. She rebelled
violently and accused God of cruelty—like the Israelites in Exodus 17:3. She
demanded that the Lord spare her daughter and told Him she could never trust
Him again if He did not do so. Well, God granted the request, in spite of the
doctors’ predictions. The child grew up and lived a normal life for 13 years,
but then joined with bad companions. Finally, the girl broke her mother’s heart
when at the age of 17 she fell into real trouble.
The tragic end of the story was told me by the weeping woman
when I arrived at her home that morning. “My Janie is dead—a suicide. Last
night she hung herself in her room!” After minutes of convulsive sobbing she
concluded, “O Doctor, how I wish God had taken her when she was 3 years old.” [1]
Houdini, magician and escape artist, could get out of
any jail, handcuffs or strait jacket that he ever tried—except one, a little
jail in the British Isles. He worked at the cell-door lock for more than two
hours—at that terrific speed which usually unlocked doors in three seconds. But
the lock wouldn’t spring. Finally, exhausted, he fell against the door. It
swung open. It had never been locked. [1]
Both of these stories deal with submission. The
first, as hard as it is, brings to light a heart unwilling to accept what God
may have known to be the best. There is no problem for a mother to plead with
God for His mercy and intervention, but to coldly threaten Him shows a
dangerous condition of the heart. God might have brought that child home to
heaven and spared the mother from a life of regret, even though the "moment" would
hurt greatly.
The second illustrates that sometimes we have an
agenda that blocks out the reality of “Truth.” The “Truth” may be far easier than you
think, but your heart has determined what must take place, so you waste a lot
of time and energy for nothing.
This next “Danger
Zone”
challenges us in how we receive correction.
We have been considering what it looks like when you
drift farther and farther from the Lord.
As we look at another danger zone let’s review:
·
First Warning #1 Laziness = Lack of
Discipline
▪ Test
yourself: Do you only do the difficult or inconvenient when forced to, or do
you choose to do the difficult, i.e. Memorize Scripture, Read through the
Bible, Fast, etc. just to stay in shape?
·
Second Warning #2 Boredom = Lack of Purpose
▪ Test
yourself: Are you Proactive in your walk with God? Do you seek from Him on your
own to create new ways to grow and serve Christ?
·
Third - Warning #3 Restlessness = Lack of Contentment
▪ Test
yourself: How do you handle solitude? If you are alone for a period of time,
can you use it profitably, or do you just become “antsy” and have to find
anything to do to distract yourself?
·
Fourth - Strong Current #4 Pride = Lack of
REAL Esteem!
▪ Test
yourself: How many of those around you know that you need Christ and have no
joy in your life without Him? Are you embarrassed to talk about your dependence
on Christ for everything in your life?
·
Fifth - Strong Current #5 Self Pity = Lack of
Control over Circumstances!
▪ Test
yourself: When someone does not fulfill a promise they made to you, how long
does it take for you to get over it? When someone has wronged you, how
difficult is it for you to forgive them?
·
Sixth - Strong Current #6 Pigging Out = Lack
of Control of Appetites
▪ Test
yourself: Which do you hunger for more, that which pleases God or that which
pleases you? Do you seek to make other feel good or your self?
·
Seventh – Danger Zone #7 Murmuring = Lack of
Joy!
▪ Test
yourself: Starting with where you are right now and what you have right now,
what’s your “beef” with God? How much time to you spend thanking God for here
and now versus wishing things were better?
Eighth – Danger Zone #8 Hatred
of being corrected
Whenever you reach the “Danger Zone” things begin to move very fast…it
is like a snowball rolling down hill! Hard to stop and no guarantee of
direction. When a person is in the “Danger Zone” they close the door of their heart to
hear correction. It begins with deafness with other humans, but then it
includes becoming deaf toward God! This exposes a very dangerous problem; Lack of Fear! A
healthy fear of God, a fear of doing wrong, believing there are no consequences
will lead to a terrible surprise in the end! Salvation is free, however, then
your life is a stewardship given a chance to invest in eternity!
Proverbs
9:7 "Whoever corrects a
mocker invites insult; whoever rebukes a wicked man incurs abuse.
Proverbs
15:12 Mockers hate to be corrected, so they stay away from the wise.
Proverbs
10:17 People who accept discipline are on the pathway to life, but those who
ignore correction will go astray.
Proverbs
15:32 If you reject discipline, you only harm yourself; but if you listen to
correction, you grow in understanding.
These scriptures describe what is called a “fool.” The
key to understanding why a fool does what he does is understanding his
foundation! Scripture does that clearly:
Psalm 14:1 The
fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.”
This has more to do with how we live than what we say. You don’t
have to utter the words “there is no God.” In fact there are many religiously devout
“fools.”
Their words claim they believe in God, but their actions prove the opposite.
Matthew 15:7–8
You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you, for he wrote, ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
Luke 6:46 “So why
do you keep calling me ‘Lord, Lord!’ when you don’t do what I say?
Test yourself: Are you accountable to anyone in your life? Are
you uncomfortable when those in the Body of Christ, that are authority figures
appointed by God, try to get close to you?
1 Peter 5:5–8 In
the same way, you younger men must accept the authority of the elders. And all
of you, serve each other in humility, for “God opposes the proud but favors the
humble.” So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right
time he will lift you up in honor. Give all your worries and cares to God, for
he cares about you. Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He
prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.
Where are you? Take time to review the "currents" and the two "danger zones" we have examined. Be honest before the Lord and allow the Holy Spirit to illuminate you of any "Drifting" in your life. Don't be afraid, we are all fallen creations, and we will always need "fine tuning" from the Spirit. The danger is ignoring it!
[1] Tan, P. L. (1996). Encyclopedia of 7700 illustrations : A treasury
of illustrations, anecdotes, facts and quotations for pastors, teachers and
Christian workers. Garland TX: Bible Communications.
