Fear not! God has numbered your hairs and He has given His Son!! https://soundcloud/tony-pittenger/pentecost-14141 Pentecost 14.14 14 September, 2014 Series A (Substitute Text) P507, 400, (427, 315), R36 Matthew 10:24–33 (ESV) 24 “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. 25 It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household. 26 “So have no fear of them, for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. 27 What I tell you in the dark, say in the light, and what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops. 28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. 30 But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. 32 So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, 33 but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven. Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear Him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. I’ll never forget these words because these words, Matthew 10:28, are the words of my confirmation verse. I was 14 years old. Had survived the barrage of questions in the examination, waited my turn in the alphabet: Paul, Mike, Jesse, then me… Pastor Baur placed his hand on my head and said “Tony, do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.” . . . Fear? Kill? Destroy? Hell? That’s my verses? Nothing about love? Faithfulness? Strength?? For years I misunderstood my confirmation verse. For years I thought this verse—and my pastor—was saying: “Tony, be afraid of the devil.” But it doesn’t. It doesn’t say that more than anything else I—and all of you—should be afraid of the devil, no! It’s talking about God. God’s the one who can destroy soul and body in hell. God. Only God. Makes it worse doesn’t it? Fourteen-year-old-me wasn’t told to be afraid of the devil but of God. Fear God because He—and He alone—controls your eternity. More than 30 years have passed since that day. My pastor knew a lot more about me than I did; rather than select something that would tickle my 14-year-old-fancy, he gave me something far more enduring and meaningful. First lets address what seems to be worst; Jesus’ words about fearing God and His potential destroying of our bodies and souls. They’re not the cheeriest, are they? In fact, rather frightening. But it’s all true. Rather than spend time debating something that God has clearly been saying for thousands of years, we would better spend that time examining ourselves. You know your sin. This morning it will do to just focus on your thoughts; we can leave your words and your deeds for another day. Just your thoughts. The rebellious ones in which you mentally sneer in disdain toward your, spouse, manager, boss, or teacher. God sees those sneers. He knows them just as He knows the dirty thoughts; you think you’ll never actually do anything about it so you think you’re a pretty good person: Look, God, at all the filth I’m thinking about but not doing—aren’t I great? Are we kidding? God demands more than outward compliance. Compliance is the behavior of a prison inmate who goes where the guards tell him to go, but loathes the one who turned him in and the one who is forcing his behavior out of him… For God it should be love! Before you say that you do love Him remember: you can’t love Him while at the same time ignore His Word. Love for God is love for His Word; love for His commandments. But you don’t do you? When you comply with His commands, its usually grudging compliance. When you obey, it’s not out of love—it’s out of duty… You do it because you don’t want to get into trouble, in other words: Because you’re afraid of getting into trouble… Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear Him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Only God controls your eternity, no one else. And if fear of that fact is what it takes to get you to simply behave, well then at least He has that. If fear of His wrath is why you refrain from stealing, then at least your neighbor’s property is safe. If fear of being caught in your sin, fear of judgment and Hell, keeps you from sin, well then at least you’re not sinning. Because catch you He can. He numbers the very hairs on your head! Researchers now say that humans have an average of 100,000 hairs on their heads… But God long before those hair counters, God said that He numbers them, as in here is #78, over here is #36211, up to about 100,000… …for you… …for me… …for every person on the planet… Staggering numbers but the point is: you won’t get away with your sin. You won’t catch Him looking the other way, or snoozing, or simply too tired to care. Psalm 90:8 says You have set our iniquities before You, our secret sins in the light of Your presence. Fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Fear Him because God has promised punishment for each and every sin. This is serious, this is true. If you live this life in rebellion toward Him, He will give you that in eternity. If you live in indifference toward Him—ignoring His Word, disobeying whenever it pleases your sinful nature…you will spend eternity in His indifference toward you. That ought to scare us! That ought to drive every last stony heart here to its knees crying for mercy. That prospect; a real hell for real people like us ought to have us clamoring to God as David did in today’s psalm: In You, O Lord, do I take refuge; let me never be put to shame; in Your righteousness deliver me! 2 Incline Your ear to me; rescue me speedily! Be a rock of refuge for me, a strong fortress to save me! You know what? That is exactly what God would have His threats do. He issues them to warn us and He issues them to drive us from ourselves to Him. Drive us to Him. For not only does He have the power to condemn; God also has the power to save! He has the power to turn this world’s evil into your good. He even has the power to turn death into life! Have no fear of eternity because you have taken refuge in God who has acted in your life to save you. You have taken refuge in His righteousness, His rescue, the eternal Rock and Fortress of Salvation. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. More value than many—MANY—sparrows. The God who knows of the death of one sparrow, who has even numbered every hair on your head, does not desire your death. In fact, He has faced Hell for you. You are of far more value than many sparrows. God so loved the world—so loved you—that He gave His only Son so that whoever believes in Him should not perish. Your sins are paid in full by Jesus. He has already suffered the Hell of them, forsaken by God that you never need be. You see, there are other ways to motivate people. Fear—fear of death and destruction may force compliance but that compliance isn’t from the heart; isn’t done out of love… Love. God’s love in Christ; this is what moves God’s people to live and behave…well…like God’s people. Love seen in mercy and forgiveness and help and comfort. We know that when we fail we do not fall again under the threat of destruction; Christ faced that for us and He is alive again. Forgiven, now what we do, we do out of love for Him. Look at how David phrased it in today’s Psalm, savor these words, make them your own: I will rejoice and be glad in Your steadfast love, because You have seen my affliction; You have known the distress of my soul… Make Your face shine on Your servant; save me in Your steadfast love! How many of you have shared the news of the Seahawks with out-of-town family and friends? Or if not the Hawks, of your own team that you live? Have you told them how special you think those players are? Behold, here is news infinitely more important and infinitely better. Hairs of our head numbered! Of such value that God would give His Son, Himself, for us!! Here is a promise to cling to, a promise to hope in, and a promise to acknowledge and share before the world. Soli Deo Gloria
Posted on: Sun, 14 Sep 2014 19:53:04 +0000
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