Sermon 9-14-08

Great God, Heavenly Father, we gather in Your house this day and thank You that through the Scriptures you have shown us that Jesus is the Light of the World. And Heavenly Father, as we hear You speaking to us through Your words in the Bible, may Your Spirit lead us in Your truth. Heavenly Father, we ask that You shine Your light upon us. And we pray this in Jesus’ Name. Amen

Scripture Readings-

The first reading today serves as the basis for our sermon as we continue our series on complaining. This reading speaks to the issue of how complaining is viewed from God’s point of view.

Old Testament – Exodus 18:13-23 The next day Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people, and they stood around him from morning till evening. When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he said, “What is this you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand around you from morning till evening?” Moses answered him, “Because the people come to me to seek God’s will. Whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me, and I decide between the parties and inform them of God’s decrees and laws.” Moses’ father-in-law replied, “What you are doing is not good. You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone. Listen now to me and I will give you some advice, and may God be with you. You must be the people’s representative before God and bring their disputes to him. Teach them the decrees and laws, and show them the way to live and the duties they are to perform. But select capable men from the people-men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain-and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share it with you. If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied.”

In next reading from the Book of Romans is one of the most misunderstood verses in the Bible. It is right up there with the phrase “money is the root of all evil”. The Bible never says that “money is the root of all evil”, the Bible says, “The love of money is the root of all evil”. We have the same principle in the Romans verses concerning judging others. People will say, “The Bible says ‘don’t judge other people’”, but that’s wrong. When we look at Romans 14:1 we see that God says, “Don’t pass judgment on disputable matters”. The Bible has a clear sense of what is right and what is wrong and it’s ok to say something is wrong; that’s not judging, it’s just repeating what the Bible says. It’s the disputable matters that we are not to judge as in, for example, should we have organ music during the worship service or should we have guitar music. The Bible doesn’t say one way or the other - don’t judge on those matters that are disputable.

Epistle –Romans 14:1-4 Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters. One man’s faith allows him to eat everything, but another man whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. The man who eats everything must not look down on him who does not, and the man who does not eat everything must not condemn the man who does, for God has accepted him. Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls and he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.

Here we have an example of what Roman 14 is talking about. John the Baptist tells Herod, “What you are doing with your brother Philip’s wife is not right.” If people said, “He’s not supposed to judge”, they would be incorrect, John the Baptist is judging according to the Word of God.

Gospel – Matthew 14:3-5 Now Herod had arrested John and bound him and put him in prison because of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, for John had been saying to him: “It is not lawful for you to have her.” Herod wanted to kill John, but he was afraid of the people, because they considered him a prophet.

Sermon –

Well, folks, some of you are just seven days away from having the life you’ve always wanted; a life where you feel healthier, a life where you have more job satisfaction, a life where you have more satisfaction in your daily activities, a life where you have fewer conflicts in your relationships, a life where you have more joy and more peace. Others are just fourteen days away, and if you haven’t been here in the past few weeks – fear not – you are just twenty-one days away from the life you’ve always wanted! All you have to do is one thing, you don’t have to change the world around you, you don’t have to change doctors, you don’t have to change jobs, you don’t have to change your relationships. You only have to do the one thing that God tells you to do in Philippians 2:14, do everything - no exceptions – absolutely everything without complaining. That’s it!

When we were discussing this in Bible Class this morning, someone said, “You know, I just love to complain!” Why do we love to complain? Because we are by nature sinful human beings, that’s what we do, it’s in our nature; we love to complain. And it takes twenty-one days to develop a new habit, it takes twenty-one days to change our human nature and live without complaining. And, those of you who have done this so far, has your life improved? Mine has – dramatically! You feel healthier, you have more satisfaction in your daily activities, and you have better relationships. It’s endless as to how your life improves when you don’t complain, you’ll have a whole new life, you’ll have a whole new you!

Last week we talked about “Explaining Complaining” and why complaining is so disastrous. How many of you here have ever heard of Norm Van Brocklin? If you’ve heard of him, you’re a die-hard football fan! Norm Van Brocklin was a famous football player and pro-football coach. When he was coaching the Atlanta Falcons in the early ‘70’s he made a rule saying that anyone in the organization caught complaining about another player, the coaching staff, the owner, the fans, or the Atlanta Falcon organization, would be fined $1000. Why? Because he knew the devastating effects that complaining can have on people, how it tears them down. God also instituted discipline for complaining. He didn’t fine people $1000 - He kept them out of the Promised Land! He had delivered the Israelites from slavery in Egypt and was bringing them into the Promised Land but the generation that complained was not permitted to enter. We usually think of God as punishing the “big” sins like murder, adultery, or stealing. But God didn’t tell the Israelites that they weren’t going to enter the Promised Land because they were murdering, stealing or living an immoral lifestyle, even though all that was going on. He wasn’t happy about any of that, but the reason they were not permitted to enter the Promised Land is because they were simply complaining. Complaining is right up there with the “big” ones!

Also last week discussed that complaining is devastating because it tears God down. If I’m complaining that everything is “wrong” in my life what does that say about my God? It says my God is essentially powerless. It says my God doesn’t care about my life. It says my God can’t do what He says He’s going to do in Romans 8:28, “All things work together for good”. And if I’m complaining about my life all the time, you would be right to think “Why would I want Pastor Berry’s God? All he does is complain about his life, that’s not a very good God.” Complaining tears down God’s glory. And, as you will see in a moment, complaining drags us down also.

But if we can’t complain, how can we change situations, how can we move on, how can we come up with solutions, how can we progress? A lot of the things we think of as complaints are really not complaints at all. This morning we want to talk about the difference between complaining and dissatisfaction. Complaining leads to unhappiness; dissatisfaction leads to progress and solutions.

For our discussion, I mentioned that we would use Exodus Chapter 18 as the basis for our sermon. God has delivered the Israelites from slavery in Egypt and Moses is their leader and judge. When things go wrong, the people go to Moses and he makes the decision, guides, and directs. It’s not going very well because there’s so much to do, all these people are lining up to hear his decisions, he’s overburdened, he is worn out working 20 hour days! If you would say to Moses, “How are things going?”, he would answer “Bad!” Or, “How’s the job satisfaction?” “Bad!” Or, “How are your relationships?” “Don’t have time for relationships!” There’s not a lot of joy, not a lot of peace in Moses’ life. Then his father-in-law, Jethro, came over, analyzed the situation, and said, “Moses, what you are doing is not good. Let me provide you with a solution. Here it is…” The question is - is what Jethro said dissatisfaction or is he simply complaining? Jethro went to Moses and made his thoughts known. Is Jethro complaining – what’s the answer?

The answer is no, he’s not complaining! Jethro told Moses that the situation was not good, that he was wearing himself out, and that it was no way to run a business and it would appear that Jethro is complaining but he isn’t. And do you know why? Because after he tells Moses that the situation is not good, he gives Moses a solution. He comes to him and says, “Here’s what you can do, Moses. Put some people under you, have them judge the minor things, and you can handle the tough things, that will relieve the burden, that will help you.” When Moses heard what Jethro said, what do you think was going on in his mind? He had been working himself to death and Jethro came up with a solution. If you would say to Moses, “How are things going?”, he would answer “Good!”. “How’s the job satisfaction?” “Good! My burden is lighter now.” “How are your relationships?” “Good! I can even be home for dinner on time now and I have a great father-in-law!” Moses has more joy and more peace in his life.

It’s not complaining if it H-E-L-P-S! Jethro helped the situation. H-E-L-P-S! - the Heard Expression (of the problem, of the dissatisfaction) Leads to Progress and Solutions! That’s what happened with Moses and Jethro. Jethro came, not to complain, but with a solution; he spoke the solution and it helped the situation.

But let’s suppose that this account had ended at verse 17 with Jethro saying to Moses, “What you’re doing is not good” and just left it there. How would Moses feel? Bad; he already had too much work to do, now his father-in-law sticking his nose into his business telling him he’s not doing it right and that he’s not a good administrator. If Jethro had left it there, it would have been complaining. Complaining has such devastating effects because, if Jethro had just told Moses that what he was doing was not good and left it there, Moses would feel bad, his job satisfaction would be bad; his relationship with his father-in-law would be bad and his relationship with his wife would be even worse, right? Moses would have no joy and he would have no peace - all because of complaining! If you’re looking at whether something is complaining or not complaining, ask, “Does this help the situation?” It’s not complaining if it H-E-L-P-S! TheHeard Expression Leads to Progress and Solutions! How people perceive what you are saying needs to lead to progress and solutions.

But now, let’s look at the Gospel lesson. John the Baptist said to Herod, “Herod you shouldn’t have taken your brother’s wife.” Is he complaining? No - but wait a second; he didn’t offer a solution to the problem so he must have been complaining! John the Baptist wasn’t complaining because he was simply speaking God’s Word; if you’re speaking God’s Word you’re not complaining. That’s why I can give a sermon telling you not to complain and I’m not complaining; you can’t say, “Pastor complained that we are complaining!” I’m giving you God’s word, therefore I’m not complaining! And if it’s something that encourages, helps, and provides solutions, it’s not complaining either. That’s how you judge.

How do you then get the complaining out of your life? Here are the steps to

HAVING THE LIFE YOU’VE ALWAYS WANTED…..

DO EVERYTHING WITHOUT COMPLAINING – Philippians 2:14

PUT OFF THE OLD SELF…BE MADE NEW IN THE ATTITUDE OF YOUR MIND – Ephesians 4:22-23

WHATEVER IS…PRAISEWORTHY – THINK ABOUT SUCH THINGS – Philippians 4:8

USE THE WRISTBAND AS AN AID TO BREAK THE OLD HABIT OF COMPLAINING AND START A NEW LIFE THAT IS COMPLAINT FREE.

ENJOY YOUR NEW LIFE; THE LIFE YOU’VE ALWAYS WANTED!

You need God’s Word to give you the power to do everything without complaining and the Holy Spirit works through the Word of God. When you read God’s Word, the Holy Spirit accompanies it and enters your life, your mind, and your spirit and enables you to do it. When you read God’s Word you’re going to make a change.

And, if you’re wondering about the wristbands, we have these purple bands that you put on your wrist. If you catch yourself complaining, take the wristband off and move it to the other wrist and begin your 21 day process all over again. It’s a good reminder during the course of the day to not complain. It certainly has helped me. There are still some left and if you want one call the Church Office at 603-352-4446. If you can’t wear the wristband at work, you can use your watch or a rubber band and switch it from wrist to wrist. Or put something in your pocket and move it from pocket to pocket; there are all sorts of things you can do. The point is to have a reminder to not complain and that you keep track of it for twenty-one days. After twenty-one days, you will have developed a new habit and you’ll have the life you’ve always wanted – a life where you will feel healthier, happier, have more job satisfaction, more satisfaction in your daily activities, more peace, more joy and less conflict in your relationships. It really works. God knows what He is talking about. He was absolutely right when He said, “Do everything, absolutely everything, without complaining!”

Prayer –

Great God, Heavenly Father, thank You for the wisdom that is contained in the Bible. Not only do You tell us what to do but Your Word is living, alive and active; the Holy Spirit is there to touch our lives and to enable us to do it. We thank You for the promise of the help of the Holy Spirit so that we can do everything without complaining. We thank you too, Lor, that in those times that we fail, when we fall, when we complain, that the forgiveness of Jesus Christ is there and our sin is gone forever. We thank you for that. All these things on our hearts and minds we bring to you this day in the Name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

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