Sunday Sermons
Treasure Hunting
The basic idea for this lesson came from watching a video called Hidden Keys to Loving Relationships by Gary Smalley. The purpose of this lesson is to help us fulfill God’s expectations when it comes to benefiting from our trials and hardships (James 1:2-4).
What Do You Like About Yourself?
This question is not designed to give you a big head, rather it is designed to make you see a couple of things. First, are you competent to judge? What is your current perspective? If you respond to the above question by saying, “I do not like anything”, or ”I cannot think of anything”, then it would appear you are someone who is more interested in self-pity or excuses then living in reality. Secondly, you will find that what you presently like about yourself, even if you are a non-Christian, are the very things that God praises. Most people will not say, “I like my selfishness”, “my arrogant attitude”, “the way I manipulate people”, and so on.’ Rather, even non-Christians, for the most part, will say something to the affect, “I like the fact that I am dependable, kind, and sympathetic”. God commends the same qualities (Galatians 5:22-23; Ephesians 4:25-32; Colossians 3:12-14). I want us to be impressed that what we really like is often what God really likes. We do bear His image (Genesis 1:26). God is not a stranger, and neither are His standards odd or foreign. You can live the Christian life, for even before you became a Christian, you were already manifesting some of the things that God commends! This first question should tell you that you are either making, or you can make progress. Spiritual and moral growth are not beyond your grasp (1 Corinthians 13:4-8; 2 Peter 1:5-11; 3:18). This first question loudly says, “Yes, it does make sense to try!”, and, “Seeking to serve God, and improve myself is a useful endeavor. I can be completely successful!”
Your Painful Experiences
And everyone has them. “No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man” (1 Corinthians 10:13). So there is no reason to feel left out and there is no reason to feel superior either. What things in life have really hurt you? What may have put you out of commission for a while, altered your perspective, things that almost destroyed you or sent you in the wrong direction? This question is not designed to make us feel sorry for ourselves, but rather to make us face up to the events that have shaped us. More will be said about this category later.
Your Support Team
Who are the people that you can turn to in a crisis? Do not give a vague answer like, “family, friends, and church”. But specifically, who would you go to if you had a serious problem? Which Christians would you ask for advice? If you started to fall away, who do you think would be the first on your doorstep with words of encouragement? (1 Thessalonians 5:14; Galatians 6:1-2; Philippians 2:20; 4:1-3; Colossians 4:11; 1 Peter 1:22). Your answer here will reveal a couple of things. First, how accessible are you? If your response to this question is, “I do not know” then it might reveal that you have made it difficult for people to get close to you, and that you are a hard person to help. It also would say that you are hindering people from serving you. On the other hand I hope that most of us would have many names when responding to this question. Hopefully it would make us realize how many people really do care about us. We do not have to endure all by ourselves, and if we do stumble, there are plenty of people to help us get back on the right track (Hebrews 12:12-15; Romans 12:10). If we are going to give up and forsake God, then we are really going to have to work at it.
The Benefits Of Trials
This is where the idea of treasure hunting finds its true application. The concept of finding good in the midst of trial is a biblical principle: Psalm 119:71 “It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I may learn Thy statues”; Philippians 1:12 “my circumstances have turned out for the greater progress of the gospel”; Philemon 15; James 1:2-4; 1 Peter 1:7 “that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold…even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ”; Romans 8:28 “God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God”; James 4:11 “Behold, we count those blessed who endured…and have seen the outcome of the Lord’s dealings, that the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful”.
Romans 5:3-4
5:3 “And not only so”: “This doesn't mean, of course, that we have only a hope in future joys”(Phi). “But we also exult in”: The second object of joy is an unexpected one. A person who can only be happy while things are going along well (easily or comfortably) will not remain that way for long. Thank God that happiness (blessedness) does not depend on outward circumstances. “Our tribulations”: “It is one thing to submit to or endure tribulations without complaint, but it is another to find ground of glorying in the midst of them” (Robertson p. 356). We speak of pain, poverty, and deprivation as "curses" and the possession of things as "blessings" but that is much too simple. A blessing is that (and only that) which brings a person closer to God and enables him to better fulfill his role in life. “Knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance”: The Christian can rejoice in such trials, because the Christian is assured that such troubles endured with the proper attitude always work for one's best interest. There is no such thing as pain without purpose for the faithful Christian. “And perseverance, proven character”: “A tried condition, a condition tried and not wanting-used in regard to metal and to coins and implies a testing of their genuineness and their full weight and being accepted when they are found to meet requirements” (Lenski p. 338). It also means strength of character and a tested character.
What are the present benefits of past painful experiences? Have you thanked God for the trials of the past, because of the good that resulted? Have such things made you more sympathetic and compassionate to those who are hurting? Were you made more aware of the needs of others? (Philippians. 2:3-4) Were you humbled? Did such troubles make you realize that your wisdom and abilities were limited and that you needed the unlimited God in your life? Did a trial wake you up and did it move you from living a superficial life to a life of real depth? Did pain in the past make you realize that this earthly life will never be perfect, do you have a greater hunger for heaven because of such pain? How have the previous trials enabled you to serve others better? Did afflictions make you more receptive to the gospel message? Was your heart already softened due to some humbling experience? Have trials assisted you in being more dedicated? (Psalm 119:67 “Before I was afflicted I went astray, But now I keep Thy word”; Hosea 6:1 “Come, let us return to the Lord. For He has torn us, but He will heal us; He has wounded us, but He will bandage us.” Has affliction brought maturity, patience, and a greater appreciation for your blessings and for what you do have? Has affliction made you realize that you really do not have a right to complain (Lamentations 3:28 “Let him sit alone and be silent”). Has affliction made you realize that worrying does not accomplish anything and that man, on his own, cannot plan ahead and prepare for everything, Ecclesiastes 8:8 “No man has authority…over the day of death”; 9:11 “that the race is not to the swift, and the battle is not to the warriors, and neither is bread to the wise, nor wealth to the discerning, nor favor to men of ability; for time and chance overtake them all”. Has pain caused you to enjoy what each day offers? Are you savoring each moment, rather than daydreaming or fretting about tomorrow? Have you learned to get the most out of each day? Recently, I found the following list:
· What has God taught me from failure?
· What has God taught me from a lack of money?
· What has God taught me from pain or sorrow or depression?
· What has God taught me through waiting?
· What has God taught me through illness?
· What has God taught me from disappointment?
· What have I learned from my family, my brethren, my relationships, and my critics?
What Obstacles Are Left?
Hebrews 12:1 “let us also lay aside every encumbrance, and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus”.’
If your answers to the previous question were very limited, and if your attitude is, “Nothing good came from that painful memory.” If you resent the idea that there is treasure to be found in any painful event, if you felt like saying, “You do not know my pain, you do not know how painful life can be”, or , “I’ve heard all this kind of talk before, and I want to tell you it does not work in real life”. Then consider the following:
The good news is that you can still allow yourself to find great treasures in those painful memories or experiences. The good news is that you can still, to this day benefit from those things. But as long as you refuse to go digging for treasure in the uncomfortable memories of the past, you are saying that you would rather use such things as excuses not to grow. What are you still, to this day, refusing to acknowledge as a beneficial experience? And why? We tend to excuse or justify current bad attitudes and sinful behavior on some event in the past, “I’m this way because”. Or, “I have a right to be angry because..” If that is the case, then that event is the current Lord of our life. We are allowing that event to dictate who we become, what type of husband, wife, parent or Christian we presently are. We are allowing that event to determine the extent of our spiritual growth and our current level of happiness, contentment, and satisfaction. Painful memories in the past are often hard to give up, because we have been using them for a long time---not only as an excuse, but as motivation for living. Is anger your fuel? Is bitterness, or resentment? How about self-pity? Do you feel motivated, as having a purpose, does life only take on meaning when you are engaged in fighting something? Must you have an enemy to be happy? If everyone in the world obeyed God tomorrow, would you feel that your purpose in life was over? If there were no more false teachers, and if everyone taught the truth, would our faith still be meaningful? Are we living for God—or for the next crisis? Consider Paul’s attitude: “I have been crucified with Christ; and 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 delivered Himself up for me” (Galatians 2:20). Remember, no longer living for self includesno longer allowing some painful experience in the past to dictate how you are going to live today. In addition, the hardships of the past should move us to appreciate and value the present and the hope that we have for eternal life (Romans 8:18).
