'PRIDE'

(CFRA broadcast date: Sunday, January 22^nd, 2012 - #662)

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http://proxy.autopod.ca/podcasts/chum/6/5728/good_news_662_jan22.mp3
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Broadcast Notes:

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Issues of Life Series…

‘Pride’

Proverbs 6:16-19

¹⁶ These six things the LORD hates,
      Yes, seven are an abomination to Him:
       ¹⁷ A proud look,
      A lying tongue,
      Hands that shed innocent blood,
       ¹⁸ A heart that devises wicked plans,
      Feet that are swift in running to evil,
       ¹⁹ A false witness who speaks lies,
      And one who sows discord among brethren.

Pride…. What a topic for discussion

A minister received a card with a note in it from a lady in his congregation. He said she was very complimentary about his preaching, and compared him with Billy Graham.

She finished by writing,

"I think you are one of the really great preachers of all time."

Later that day, when he showed the note to his wife, she asked, "Who is that woman?" He replied,

"She is a very intelligent woman in the congregation who loves great preaching."

He then asked his wife,

"How many great preachers do you suppose there really are in the world?"

She replied, "One less than you think."

Story has been told of a lion who was very proud and decided to take a walk one day to demonstrate his mastery over all the other creatures.

He strutted his way through the forest until he came across a bear, ‘WHO IS THE KING OF THE JUNGLE BEAR?  ‘Why of course you are mighty lion’.

He went on until he found the tiger, ‘WHO IS THE KING OF THE JUNGLE TIGER?’ ‘Why you are great lion’.

Next the lion found the elephant, ‘WHO IS THE KING OF THE JUNGLE FAT ELEPHANT?’

The elephant immediately grabbed the lion with his trunk and spun him around a few times and slammed him to the ground.
He then stepped on him a few times and picked him up and dunked him in the water and then threw him up against a tree.

The lion staggered to his feet and said, ‘LOOK, JUST BECAUSE YOU DON’T KNOW THE ANSWER IS NO REASON TO GET SO UPSET!’

Some people are so full of pride they don’t even realize it.

The master pets a dog, and the dog wags its tail and thinks, “He must be a god.”

But the master pets his cat, and the cat purrs, shuts its eyes and thinks to itself, “I must be a god.”
Though Jesus in grace reached down to us, there is still a perverse human tendency to think like the cat!

Perfectionist
Nobody can do it as well as me, so I need to make sure I am the one that does it.

Rebellious
I will do it my way and that is the only way.  Most of the people who are in authority over me are in the place I deserve to be in.

Insecure
I am not really comfortable with who I am, but if I fake it well enough, nobody will ever know..
Dissatisfied
No matter how good it may be, they feel they deserve it to be better.

Pride and dissatisfaction can lead to excessive debt and poor financial responsibility as well.
Egotistical
It has always got to be about me.

If I am not the center of attention,

I will do what is necessary to change that.

Pride says, “I don’t need you God”.

Pride says, "I am good enough just like I am."
Pride says, "I don’t need Jesus to get me to heaven."

The ultimate expression of pride is to think we can do without God.

All sins root themselves in Pride.
C.S Lewis says that compared to pride all others sins: unchasity, greed, drunkenness and the like are mere flea-bites. He says that every vice comes from pride and that pride is that anti-God state of mind.

1     We are totally dependent upon God for all we are.

Four Re-Actions to that statement:

·         Anger

·         Apathy

·         Acting

·         Acceptance

"Hypocrisy"  is mentioned 20 times in New Testament. 
Hypocrisy = Actor

·         A person who pretends to be what he is not.

So why would a person pretend as an actor?

Pride

2    Truths about Pride

·         None of us are completely free of pride

·         It’s seems to rear its ugly head over and over

·         Those who refuse to admit to having pride are often the very ones who fall because of it.

3    Categories of Pride

·         Social pride

·         Spiritual pride

·         Financial pride

·         Political pride

·         Cultural pride

·         Educational pride

·         Intellectual pride

·         Pedigree Pride

·         Denominational pride
The list could go on and on...

4     God Hates Pride

Proverbs 6:16-19

Six things God hates and one more that he

loathes with a passion. (the Message)

·         Haughty eyes (a proud look)

      Eyes that are arrogant

Proverbs 16:18

“Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall”                                                                  

Leviticus 26:18-19 - God declares:

“If after all this you will not listen to me,

 I will punish you for your sins seven times over.

I will break down your stubborn pride...”

Psalm 10:4

“In his pride the wicked does not seek God;

in all his thoughts there is no room for God.”

We live in a "me-ism" world...where we might have:

·         A tongue that lies

·         Hands that shed innocent blood                                                

·         Hands that murder the innocent; (one might think about abortion)

·         A heart that devises wicked schemes

A heart that hatches evil plots

·         Feet that are quick to rush into evil

Feet that race down a wicked track

·         A false witness who pours out lies

A mouth that lies under oath

·         A man who stirs up dissension

among the brothers (church)

A troublemaker in the family

Acceptance

Hymn writers John Newton and William Cowper were

close friends.  One morning, reflecting upon the words

‘by the grace of God I am what I am’ (1 Cor. 15:10)

John Newton looked across the kitchen table and said to William Cowper

‘I’m not what I ought to be.

I’m not what I want to be.

I’m not what I hope to be.

But thank God I’m not what I used to be’

"There is no limit to how far a person can go as long as he doesn’t care who gets the credit for it."  -A plaque on Pres. Ronald Regan’s Desk.

 Egyptian astronomer Ptolemy in the 2nd century

postulated that the earth was the center of the universe, that the earth was still, that other planets orbited and other planets rotated, but the earth not. The universe revolved around the earth. It made sense, and people believed it. For 1400 years.

In the 16th century came a man named Nicklaus Copernicus.

He started poking around and asking questions:

"Why do some stars appear in the day and others at night?"
"What causes the seasons to change?"
"Does anyone know exactly how far ships can sail before falling off the edge of the earth?"

Copernicus had figured out that not only did the earth itself rotate, it also revolved around the sun.

The world doesn’t revolve around US?

This was hard for people to accept.

Galileo came along saying the same things –

and for advocating these beliefs the church

kicked him out and the state put him under

house arrest.
Copernicus and Galileo pointed to the sun and said –

"The center of the universe"

Max Lucado in his book It’s Not About Me writes: "What Copernicus did for the earth, God does for our souls. Tapping the collective shoulder of humanity, he points to the Son - his Son - and says "Behold the center of it all."

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To listen to the above broadcast, click on the following link:

http://proxy.autopod.ca/podcasts/chum/6/5728/good_news_662_jan22.mp3

"Do You Know How to Love God?"

(CFRA Broadcast date: January 15^st , 2012)

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 http://proxy.autopod.ca/podcasts/chum/6/5659/good_news_661_jan15.mp3
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Podcast Notes:

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Issues of Life Series…

‘Do You Know How to Love God?’

My Message today is entitled:

Do you know how to love God?

Do you know how to love?

Do you love God?

Do you know how to love God?

Do you know how to love God the way He wants to be loved?

Rod Stewart sang about 10 years ago.

It goes like this:

"Have I told you lately that I love you?

Have I told you, there’s no one else above you?

You fill my heart with gladness.

Take away all my sadness.

Ease my troubles.

That’s what you do."

Do you know how to love God?

Here’s the truth!

God created you to love Him in four ways:

·         Heart       -  with our affections/emotions

·         Soul          -  with our personality

·         Mind         -  with our thoughts (on hpw to please God)

·         Strength   -  with our resources

Schema

Do you know how to love God the way He wants to be loved?

Gary Chapman….. wrote about the 5 Love Languages

·         Time

·         Word of affirmation/praise

·         Acts of service

·         Touch

·         Gifts

Love

God loves you.

God loves you with completely.

There is nothing that you can do to make God love you more.

The Invitation            Matthew 11:29, 30

‘Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,

for I am gentle and humble in heart and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.’

Yoked

·         Both are trained to respond

·         to the same commands

·         in the same manner

·         at the same moment

so when they are joined together  they are a team.

Do you see it?

That’s a picture of being yoked together with Christ in love.

That’s a picture of being yoked together with your spouse

Yoke Pictures Three Things:  Connection - Direction - Cooperation

1.   Connection        “Be with Me.”

Yokes are made for two, not one.

We were not meant to go through life living apart from God.

His yoke fits well and is lighter than the one we’ve been pulling by ourselves.

2.   Direction             “Follow Me.”

The idea of a yoke pictures the forward motion of two connected together.

You cannot be yoked to Jesus and go your own way anymore.

We follow Him and His direction for our life.

3.   Cooperation      “Work with Me.”

To be yoked together means that we co-operate with His work.

Before we come to Him, we were living for this side of eternity.

Now we are joined to His work and discover that our lives make an eternal impact.  We experience only when we obey:

The famous atheist Frederick Nietzsche, who coined the phrase “God is dead,” once said, “Assert yourself.”

Care for nothing except yourself.

The only vice is weakness and the only virtue is strength.

Be strong. Be a superman. The world is yours if you work hard enough for it!”

In contrast Jesus said,

“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth”

Matthew 5:5

Two very different ideas.

Although the first words are from an atheist, and the last quote from the teaching of Jesus, it often seems that Christians go by Nietzsche’s philosophy rather than Jesus’ teaching. Many Christians live as though the only virtue is strength.

Two very different ideas. Although the first words are from an atheist, and the last quote from the teaching of Jesus, it often seems that Christians go by Nietzsche’s philosophy rather than Jesus’ teaching. Many Christians live as though the only virtue is strength. Jesus never talked about strength, but he often spoke of meekness.

‘Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,

for I am gentle and humble in heart and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.’

The promise is that there will be rest for the stressed.

Time magazine noted that back in the 60’s, expert testimony was given to a Senate sub-committee on time management. They predicted that advances in technology would radically change how many hours a week people worked.

They forecasted that the average N. American would be working 22 hours a week within 20 years.

“The great challenge,” the experts said,

“would be figuring out what to do with all the excess time.”

Over 40 years later, after major advances in technology –

how many of us are wondering what to do with all the excess time on our hands?

 Our world has become the world of the Red Queen of Alice and Wonderland.

She said:

“Now here, you see, it takes all the running you can do to keep in the same place. If you want to get somewhere else, you must run at least twice as fast as that.”

There is “Rest For The Stressed”

when we are ‘yoked’ with Jesus Christ’

The Bible teaches us that there are Four Factors that we need to know when it comes to Loving God, the way God wants to be loved.

1   Loving God means:  Obeying God

·         Duty based Obedience

·         Fear based Obedience

·         Affection based Obedience

If you love me, you will obey what I command     John 14:15

Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one

who loves me..  John 14:21

If anyone loves me, he will  obey my teaching.  John 14:23

Obedience is better then sacrifice         1 Samuel 15:22

2   Loving God involves  Trusting God

You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You

because he trust in you.  Trust in the Lord forever    Isaiah 26:3

Trust in the Lord with all your heart                          Proverbs 3:5

3   Loving God requires our loyalty to Truth.

·         Your Word is Truth                              John 17:17

·         The Truth will set you free.                John 8:32

·         The reason I was born

The reason I came into the world was to testify to the Truth.

John 18:37

4   Loving God includes a consuming desire to live for Him

    

·         A lovesick abandonment to God.

1   Four Words of Love

Storge            =   safe/secure

Phileo             =   friend

Epithamia      =   non sexual intimacy

Agapeop        =   unconditional loyalty

2    Four spheres of Love

·         Loving God means:                    Obeying God

·         Loving God involves                   Trusting God

·         Loving God requires our             Loyalty to Truth.

John 18:37

·         Loving God includes  a              Consuming desire

3   Five Love Languages

“Saint Augustine gave interesting advice concerning ‘loving God’ when he said,

“Love God, then do as you please.”

 

·         Time

·         Words of affirmation

·         Service

·         Touch

·         Gifts

4    Why is it important to Love God?

·         Dr. Carl Zimmerman  "Family and Civilization"

Dr. Carl Zimmerman wrote a very important book called, "Family and Civilization"

The book was a result of research he had done on 3000 years of family life. This Harvard Professor made a powerful case for traditional family structure.

The conclusion of his book could be summed up like this:

As go the children so goes the culture;

as goes the family so goes society!

Carl Zimmerman gives 7 indicators that a culture is in decline. According to history, culture that have gone into decline are characterized by:

1    An increased in the rate of divorce.

2    Lack of commitment to the permanence of marriage.

3   Redefining the meaning of family as a solution                   
     to social problems.

4   Lack of respect for parental authority.

5   Promotion of co-habitation over marriage.

6   Lack of inhibition concerning adultery.

7   Acceptance of all forms of sexuality.

It is interesting to know that Dr. Zimmerman was a secular historian and that he never confessed to be a Christian. And again, it is interesting as well to note that he published his research in 1947.

There’s an old saying,

"If a person doesn’t stand for something, they’ll fall for anything."

"Core Values,"

Ø  Truth

Ø  Love

Ø  Hope

These ‘Core Values’ must be delivered consistently with ‘honesty’ and ‘integrity’.

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To listen to the above broadcast, click on the following link:

http://proxy.autopod.ca/podcasts/chum/6/5659/good_news_661_jan15.mp3

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‘Impacting Youth for Christ’

Rev. Donald S. Crisp

(CFRA broadcast date:  Sunday, January 8^th, 2012 - #660)

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http://proxy.autopod.ca/podcasts/chum/6/5612/good_news_660_Jan08.mp3
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Broadcast Notes:

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My Message today is entitled:  ‘Impacting Youth for Christ’

1          The Role of the Parent/Church is to parent your children forward in their faith. 

            First introduce them to Christ then disciple them.

2          The Role of the Church Family likewise, to come alongside of our parents and help them move is their children forward in their faith.

In essence the Church can be a real vehicle of blessing to and for our youth.

Now let’s listen to these helpful words from God.

These are found in The Bible  - 1 Thessalonians 2:10, 11, 12

‘You are witnesses and so is God, of how holy, righteous, and blameless we were among you who believed. 

For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, Encouraging, comforting and urging you

to live lives worthy of God,  who calls you into His kingdom and glory.’

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My goal in this message is to be informational and Inspirational. 

Families today are stressed and taxed to their limit.

Families today need a support team to help with the challenge of encouraging the youth to make something wonderful of their life.

We do this be encouraging, comforting and urging them forward in their faith journey.

Unfortunately, so many families today are taxed to the max and are experiencing ‘fall-out’ and ‘crisis’ when it comes to raising their kids……

Robert Orben once wrote:

Who can ever forget Winston Churchill’s immortal words:

"We shall fight on the beaches,

we shall fight on the landing grounds,

we shall fight in the fields and in the

streets, we shall fight in the hills." –

Robert Orben said: those words of Winston Churchill

sound exactly like our most recent family vacation.

 The fact is the Parental Challenge has been with us for centuries.

                                                    

An Assyrian tablet written about 4700 years ago lamented: "children no longer obey their parents." 

In 425 B.C. (some 2,400 years ago) Socrates was more elaborate: “Our youth today love luxury.  They have bad manners, contempt for authority, disrespect for older people.  Children nowadays are tyrants. They contradict their parents, gobble their food, and tyrannize their teachers.”

We seem to have both a Historical and Hysterical parenting problem today.  Nothing is really new… but what do we do?

According to Dr. James Dobson,                                                  

·         80% of parents feel like they’re failures!

·         This “crisis of confidence” is affecting families all around the country.                                                                                                     

·         Parents today have saddled themselves with unnecessary guilt, fear, and self-doubt.     

3          I believe the goal for parenting is to raise a child that is hungry for God.  A God-first child.    

            This is exactly where the Church can come alongside of our youth.                                                 

Not a youth that says:  God is part of my life.  

But, God is my life and I love Him.

Proverbs 22:1-6…. says that we are to ‘train up’ a child.

(Charles Swindoll. You and Your Child.

( Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1977)

“train up” in the Hebrew is a word used to describe the palate or the roof of the mouth.

It was used to describe the actions of a Hebrew mid-wife who after helping to deliver a baby would dip her finger in a paste made of dates and rub it on the gums of the new baby to create thirst and start the baby’s feeding instinct.

This is such a wonderful ‘word picture’ that has deepened my understanding when it comes to the role of a godly parent.

·         The parent is in like manner to create a thirst in their child for God.  The Church can partner with the parent to assist and resource the parents in accomplishing this wonderful goal.

This means the youth in the church and the youth in the community as well…. Wow!  What an opportunity!  What a privilege to Impact Youth for Christ.

Certainly the best way of accomplishing this is by

·         parents modeling what they believe

·         the Church family through our youth programs modeling what they believe.

·         Parents and Church Family actually ‘talk the talk’ and ‘walk the walk’.. 

Imagine a Youth Ministry that impact youth for Christ

A ministry that seeks to impress on our youth that God loves them and that they matter to God.

We have the opportunity to inform them that God has a plan for their live.

Jeremiah 29:11-13  -‘For I know the plans I have for you says God, plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future’

  

 

4   I also believe that the role of the parent is best described as ‘guarding and guiding’

Again, our Church Youth Ministries can come alongside of our parents to assist and resource.

Allow me to demonstrate what I mean about ‘Guarding’

One author told of ancient China and the need the people there to provide security against the barbaric hordes to the north, so they built the great wall.

It was so high they believed no one could climb over it and so thick nothing could break it down.

During the first hundred years of the wall’s existence, China was invaded 3 times.

·         Not once did the barbaric hordes break down the wall or climb over it.

·         Each time they bribed a gatekeeper and then marched right through the gates.

One commentator made this observation:

“The Chinese were so busy relying on walls of stone they forgot to teach integrity to their children.”

This is a message that is meant to encourage parents  to ‘teach integrity’ by modeling it in their homes.

Our Youth Ministries have a great opportunity to prayerfully come alongside of our youth and teach them to guard their hearts – minds and souls.     

James 1:27  ….’keep from being polluted by the world’

Here’s the goal…..

1 Thessalonians 2:12

‘live lives worthy of God’  ….  this child will growth to be hungry for God as you ‘Guard and Guide’ them through life.

A life that is being ‘lived and that is worthy of God’

is described by the Apostle Paul  in verse 10 as being:

·         Holy

·         Righteous

·         Blameless  (A child that is passionately in love with Jesus)

Isn’t that your prayer for your children?

Isn’t this your prayer for your grandchildren?

Shouldn’t that be the prayer of the Church for their Youth?

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Now we need to look at the ‘how to’ for the ‘ought to’

The ‘how to’ is found in verse 11

Paul writes:

For you know that we dealt with each of you

as a father deals with his own children,

·         Encouraging,

·         comforting and

·         urging

     you to live lives worthy of God,

That’s the ‘how to’

Three things that parents need to do:

Encourage – Comfort – Urge

Three things that the Church needs to do in their Youth Ministries.

Encourage – Comfort – Urge

Now let’s look at these three words:

Encouraging           =          means to encourage forward

·         This is a picture of a ‘coach’ encouraging their athlete forward in their growth.

·         This is a picture of a ‘parent’ encouraging their child forward in their faith.

 Comforting               =          means to stimulate one to discharge

                                                their duties or responsibilities

·         This is a picture of a ‘coach’ speaking softly and tenderly….

      as they say…. Over and over …. ‘you can do it!’

      ‘Keep moving forward’… you can do it!’

·         This is a picture of a ‘parent’ speaking softly and tenderly

 to their child as they say over and over again….

‘Keep moving forward’ ’you can do it!’

 

Urging      =     To stir up with authority   

This is a picture of a ‘coach’ who is encouraging their athlete forward as they keep saying

‘I know you can do it, keep moving forward’.  The coach is now speaking with ‘authority’.

This is a picture of a coach who is encouraging their child

Forward in their faith, while saying over and over again,  

‘I know you can do it, keep moving forward in your faith’                                       

My prayer is that the Church today would focus intentionally on the Youth in their Church and in their Community.

Loving them, encouraging them, urging them forward in their faith journey……as we coach them forward in their faith.

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To listen to the above broadcast, click on the following link:
 http://proxy.autopod.ca/podcasts/chum/6/5612/good_news_660_Jan08.mp3

Church Sign Message...

Good advice on church sign, going into 2012.