“A CLEAN SLATE”
SELECTED SCRIPTURES
I. Introduction
It’s almost 2012. In just a few hours you will have a clean slate, and opportunity to start fresh. 2011 will be gone. Many of the events and most of the minor details will eventu-ally fade from memory. Some of the good things, most of the bad things, much of what we presently think is important, and virtually all of the trivial things, will be forgotten. They will be left behind, and you will be able to start over.
But start over with what? A New Year’s resolution? How many of you have made them in the past? How have they worked out for you? The problem is that those resolutions, those commitments, are usually empowered by human will. While there is no doubt that some people have a stronger will than others, there is also no doubt that human will has no real power. Have you, with all good intentions, made some sort of New Year commit-ment that didn’t last beyond Valentine’s Day? Sure you have. I have too.
Here’s a typical list of the New Year’s resolutions people routinely make.
1. more time with family and friends
2. get fit
3. lose weight
4. quit smoking
5. enjoy life
6. quit drinking
7. get out of debt
8. learn something new
9. help others
10. get organized
Now those are all perfectly good goals, aren’t they? But they all have one thing in com-mon. They are all about our earthly relationships and they are all temporal. What I mean by that is this. They all have to do with our current lives in this world. None of them directly address our heavenly relationship with God, and none of them speak directly to things which are eternal.
Someone could certainly argue that more time with family and friends and/or helping others may well have some eternal value, but what eternal value is there in getting fit, or getting out of debt or getting organized, if you don’t also get saved?
Or what about a Christian who struggles with tobacco or alcohol? I struggled with both. Thirty years ago, by God’s grace, He gave me the strength to give up both. But what eternal good comes from giving up smoking or giving up drinking if a man doesn’t also give up his personal pride, repent of his sin, and put his faith in Jesus Christ?
So if your commitments or resolutions are solely earthly and temporal, they really aren’t worth much in the heavenly and eternal scheme of things. So today, with 2012 only a few hours away, I’d like to suggest a three-part commitment to God. You can call it a New Year’s resolution if you want, but it will have more staying power if you call it what it is – a fresh start, a clean slate with the Lord.
Where do you begin? You begin with confession of sin. That is where it always starts.
1 John 1:8-9
8 If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
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II. Text
Once you have confessed your sin you have your “Clean Slate.” Here are the three areas of your eternal relationship to which you can then commit yourselves. They are Bible-reading, prayer, and Christian stewardship. But none of them will work, none of them will bear eternal fruit, unless you first hear and obey Jesus.
Matthew 22:37-38
37 “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.
38 This is the great and foremost commandment.”
Jesus is saying our commitment to Him must supersede every other human commitment.
*Luke 14:26-27, 33
26 “If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.
27 “Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.”
33 “So therefore, no one of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possessions.”
The Greek word translated “hate” in v. 26 is “misĕō.” Its literal meaning is just that –hate. But, as is the case with almost any word, the full and complete understanding of the word only becomes clear in the context within which it is used. Here in Luke 14:26, as well as in the parallel passage in Matthew 10:37, “hate” means to “love less.”
So what Jesus is saying to us is this. We must love Him so much and so deeply that our love for our spouses, our children, our families, and our friends would seem like hatred by comparison. This is the level of commitment to which you and I are called. Anyone who thinks they can attain that level of commitment by their own will, or in their own power, is obviously kidding themselves. So we need to ask ourselves three questions.
(v. 26) Am I willing to love Jesus that much? Yes? Then you can be His disciple.
(v. 27) Am I willing to take up my own cross and follow Jesus, even if it means pain and suffering along the way? Yes? Then you can be His disciple.
(v. 33) Am I willing to give up all I possess and follow Jesus? Yes? Then you can be His disciple.
The question isn’t, “Do you,” or even, “Can you”? The question is, “Are you willing?” Jesus doesn’t say He will take everything from you. Jesus doesn’t say you will suffer in the same way and to the same degree He suffered. Jesus doesn’t say He will take every member of your family from you. But what He does say is this. IF He took everything and everyone from you and IF He put you through great suffering, would you still love Him? That is the question. Is your answer, “Yes”? Then you can be His disciple.
Remember Job? Not every believer suffers like Job did. Far from it! But he remains an example of one who suffered and yet never turned his back on the Lord. In Job 2:10 he said, “Shall we indeed accept good things from God and not accept adversity?”
A commitment to God will result in blessings in this life and unspeakable joy in the life to come. Don’t worry if you can’t do it in your own power. No one can. Just tell Jesus that you are willing to follow Him and He will provide the power through His Holy Spirit who lives in every Christian. Are you willing?
I said I wanted to discuss three things that are marks of true Christian commitment. The first is Bible-reading. Do you read your Bible regularly? After all, it is a series of letters the Holy Spirit has written to you. Don’t you want to know what He has to say? The Bereans certainly did. Berea was a city in what is northern Greece today. When Paul and Silas arrived there on the second missionary journey they found people who were hungry for God’s Word.
Acts 17:10-11
10 …Paul and Silas (went to) Berea; and when they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews.
11 Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily, to see whether these things were so.
Listen, the Bible is our primary defense against false teachers. Just as it was true for the Bereans, so it is true for us as well. A regular plan for reading can be helpful. Some of you have a “Read through the Bible in a Year” guide. That will work.
Some may want to start somewhere other than Genesis. Some may want to read through the NT first. Some may read and re-read a particular book so as to become very familiar with it. But, in the overall scheme of things, it is far more important that you get into God’s Word somewhere. If you don’t know where to start try the Gospel of John.
Or you could begin with the Psalms. Psalm 1 is only six verses, but it speaks to the very issue of studying and meditating on the Scriptures. Just one Psalm each day would give you five straight months of Bible-reading.
Would you like to sample some of God’s wisdom? Read Proverbs or Ecclesiastes. What about seeing Christ in the OT? Read Isaiah. Are you interested in why we do some of the things we do as a church? You can learn about the founding and early history of the church by reading Acts. Are you up for a challenge? Try Hebrews. Some consider it to be the most difficult book in the NT. Are you fascinated by eschatology, also known as end-times prophecy? Then dive into Revelation. Of the sixty-six books in the Bible it is the only one that promises a blessing to those who read and study it.
And please don’t be intimidated by the Bible. You won’t understand every detail the first time you come across something. You won’t learn everything, but you will learn some-thing. Let God speak to you. And remember this…
Deuteronomy 29:29
29 “The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our sons forever, that we may observe all the words of this law.”
Many of you grew up attending AWANA. Remember “the AWANA verse?”
2 Timothy 2:15
15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth.
The second thing I want to address is prayer. Like Bible-reading, prayer is a mark of true Christian commitment. The problem is that too many of God’s people simply don’t have any idea of how to have rich and fulfilling prayer lives.
That lack of knowledge leads to weakened faith and hinders our effectiveness as salt and light in the world today. If you and I are to have any kind of a God-honoring and power-ful prayer life, we need to get the basic facts and truths clear so we can pray, not in ignor-ance, but in the grace and knowledge of God.
So my question to you is this. “Are you satisfied with your prayer life?” I won’t assume that none of you are, but I strongly suspect that most are not. That’s not where we, as Bible-believing Christians, should be. With regard to our prayer lives it seems that there are always two major areas of concern. The first is that we don’t pray enough. Doesn’t God’s Word tells us to pray continually?
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
16 Rejoice always;
17 pray without ceasing;
18 in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
But what exactly does that mean? How can anyone literally pray without ceasing? We need to understand the meaning of the word translated “ceasing.” The Greek is “adia-lĕiptŏs.” One Greek dictionary defines the word as follows:
“(without ceasing means) …continually, without intermission. In (this verse) we find Paul’s injunction to incessantly pray, which means to pray every time an opportunity presents itself and to be in a constant attitude of dependence upon God. It does not mean that the believer should neglect everything else and should utter unending prayer, or that he should abstain from work and cloister himself in a monastery where he can constantly pray.”
So how often should we pray? If we are constantly aware of our dependence upon God for everything and even for every breath we take, then we will be persistent in prayer and we will always be ready to pray anywhere and at any time. That kind of prayer life is developed over time. As your relationship with God grows, as you see Him more clearly, and as you love Him more, the more natural “praying without ceasing” will become. So commit yourself to pray more.
A second reason many Christians are less than satisfied with their prayer life is that we so often try to turn God into our own personal “celestial vending machine.” I doubt that many true Christians do this deliberately or even consciously, but we tend to do it. I think the main thing we need to remember when it comes to prayer is that, first and fore-most, we are to seek God’s glory. We cannot glorify God doing things our way. We can only glorify God by doing things His way. We must approach Him on His terms.
• First, we must be Christians.
• Second, we must be striving to live a life of obedience to Christ.
• Third, we must pray “…in Jesus’ name.” That does not mean we simply throw the name of Jesus around as if it is some sort of magic key that opens the gates of hea-ven. What it does mean is we go to God on the merits of Christ and Christ alone.
When Jesus gave the disciples what we commonly call “The Lord’s Prayer,” He wasn’t telling them what to pray. They had asked Him, “Lord, teach us (how) to pray…”
*Matthew 6:9-13 (NKJV) (Jesus speaking)
9 “In this manner, therefore, pray: ‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name.
10 ‘Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is heaven.
11 ‘Give us this day our daily bread.
12 ‘And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
13 ‘And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’”
That’s not the prayer. That’s the pattern for prayer. So when you and I approach the throne of grace, our first concern is to be for God’s glory. In v. 9 we adore God and we glorify Him. In v. 10 we plead for His will to be done and we submit ourselves to Him.
In vv. 11-13 we present our petitions, we seek God’s protection, and we praise Him. If you struggle with a personally satisfying and vibrant prayer life, try going before God with “The Lord’s Prayer.” But you don’t need to say it verbatim. Use it as a pattern. Here, in the order in which Jesus gave them, are seven things to talk about with God.
1. Tell Him how much you love Him.
2. Ask Him to help you glorify Him in your daily life.
3. Pray for His will to be done in your life, the lives of your loved ones, and the world in which we live.
4. Ask Him for what you need today. (He already knows, but He wants you to ask.)
5. Forgive anyone who has offended you or hurt you.
6. Pray for spiritual protection.
7. Praise God and thank Him for who He is what He does.
If you do these things you will be amazed at the improvement in the richness and quality of your prayer life. If you do these things you will begin to see God answer your prayers. If you do these things your prayers will stop “bouncing off the ceiling.” If you do these things you will begin to develop a renewed commitment to prayer.
Starting tomorrow morning you have a clean slate. So commit yourself to Bible-reading, commit yourself to prayer, and commit yourself to a third thing. Commit yourself to improving your Christian stewardship.
You might think of Christian stewardship as our personal management of the resources God has given us. And make no mistake – everything you have has come from God. Paul makes that very point with a rhetorical question addressed to the church at Corinth.
“What do you have that you did not receive (1 Corinthians 4:7)?” James answers that question and speaks directly to the fact that everything we have comes from God.
*James 1:17-18
17 Every good thing bestowed and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.
18 In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that we might be, as it were, the first fruits among His creatures.
Since God has exercised His will to give us every good thing, including the salvation of our souls, how can we not give back to Him? It is here, in a richer and fuller under-standing of God’s commitment to us, that we strive to commit ourselves to Him. The practical outworking of that commitment is seen in our stewardship. Another way of saying it is that our Christian commitment is what drives our Christian stewardship
Stewardship without commitment is like a having a brand new BMW with an empty gas tank. It’s really nice but it’s not going anywhere. Christian stewardship can be defined by the three principles of sowing, attitude, and return (or reaping).
First, consider the principle of sowing. Let’s start by saying what this isn’t. It isn’t the “health and wealth gospel” or the “name it and claim it” craze that’s so popular on tele-vision today. For example, nowhere in Scripture does God guarantee that if you give $100 today you will get $1000 tomorrow. Although, to listen to some of the charlatans on TV, you’d think that was sound doctrine. So what is the principle of sowing?
2 Corinthians 9:6
6 Now this I say, he who sows sparingly shall also reap sparingly; and he who sows bountifully shall also reap bountifully.
The word “bountifully” is “ĕulŏgia.” It simply means “blessings.” If you bless others liberally, you will be blessed liberally. And remember this. God will never ask you to give something you don’t have. On the contrary, you are to give from what you do have.
Deuteronomy 16:17
17 “Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the LORD your God which He has given you.”
Let me put it this way. God doesn’t take credit cards! That is to say, you are not to go into debt to make a donation. If you don’t have it, you don’t give it. But whatever you do you have, give to God first! (repeat)
Why is that so important? It’s so important because it reveals the true spiritual condition of your heart. Scripture always calls for us to give God our best. He pours out blessings on those who do so because they have demonstrated their faith in Him. And Hebrews 11:6 says, “…without faith it is impossible to please Him…”
God gives back to those who give to Him. And be assured of this. He is capable of giving you far more than you are capable of giving Him. The world says, “Hold on to everything you’ve got,” but God promises to bless generosity. In the NT Paul counsels Timothy to teach the rich to be generous.
1 Timothy 6:17-18
17 Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy.
18 Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share…
Many of us may tend to think that “rich” doesn’t apply to us. But compare yourselves and your situations to vast numbers of Christian men, women, and children on this earth.
Is there anyone here who is wearing the only clothes they own? Is there anyone here who won’t eat today? Is there anyone here who has no bed to sleep in tonight? You may want to rethink your idea that you’re not rich. So the first basic principle of Christian stewardship is the principle of sowing.
Second, consider the principle of attitude.
2 Corinthians 9:7
7 Let each one do just as he has purposed in his heart; not grudgingly or under compulsion; for God loves a cheerful giver.
“…purposed in his heart…” means “decided.” You have to make a conscious decision about your giving. But if you wait until Sunday morning to decide, based on how much you have left over for the week or for the month, you will be giving grudgingly.
“…grudgingly…” comes from a Greek word meaning “sorrow” or “grief.” If it is a sorrowful or a grievous thing for you to put money in the offering box, nothing good can possibly accrue to you. The church will receive your offering, but you need to under-stand that there will be no blessing coming back to you if you give grudgingly.
Look, if you can trust God with the salvation of your soul, why can’t you trust Him with your money? Again, God does not expect you to give what you don’t have. He does not want you to give more than you can, He wants you to cheerfully give all that you can.
Why do I say that? I say that based on this attitude principle. God will accomplish more in your life with $100 given cheerfully than with $1000 given grudgingly. So give all you can cheerfully give! It’s not what you do with it. It’s what God does with it.
Do you remember what Jesus did with five loaves and two fish? Thousands of people ate supper that evening. Do you see the principle? It doesn’t matter if you have little or much. Just bring it to Jesus and then watch and see what He does with it. The first prin-ciple is sowing. The second principle is attitude.
Third, consider the principle of reaping.
2 Corinthians 9:8
8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed.
There is a return for faithfulness and generosity. It may not be what you expect. It may not come when you expect it. But there is a return. How much? This much!
Malachi 3:10
10 “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test me now in this,” says the LORD of hosts, “if I will not open for you the windows of heaven, and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows.”
Jesus tells us of the same principle of return in the NT.
Luke 6:38
38 “Give, and it will be given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, they will pour out into your lap. For by your stan-dard of measure it will be measured to you in return.”
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III. Conclusion
I want to close with an imaginary dialogue between Jesus and a young man who is looking for a Savior. This has been paraphrased from a “Call to Discipleship” magazine article written by evangelist Juan Carlos Ortiz back in 1975. Let me be clear. The story itself is pure fiction, but the truth it illustrates is pure biblical truth.
In the story the man finds Jesus and realizes that Jesus alone possesses the Pearl of Great Price. In Matthew the pearl is a metaphor for the kingdom of heaven and for the gospel. Within this pearl is found happiness, true joy, peace, security, spiritual healing, and eter-nal salvation. The man marvels at the pearl and he says to Jesus…
Man: “I really want that pearl. How much does it cost?”
Jesus: “It’s very costly, very dear.”
Man: “Yeah, but how much is it?”
Jesus: “It’s very expensive.”
Man: “Okay, but can I buy it?”
Jesus: “Yes, but it will cost you everything you have – no more…and no less.”
Man: “I’ll buy it.”
Jesus: “Well then, what do you have? Let’s write it down.”
Man: “I have $100,000 in the bank.”
Jesus: “Good, $100,000. What else?”
Man: “I have nothing else. That’s all I have.”
Jesus: “Have you nothing more?”
Man: “Well, I have a few dollars here in my pocket.”
Jesus: “How much?”
Man: “Let’s see: Forty, sixty, eighty, one hundred, one hundred ten, one hundred sixteen, one hundred seventeen – one hundred seventeen dollars.”
Jesus: “I’ll take that. What else do you have?”
Man: “I have nothing else. That’s all I have.”
Jesus: “Where do you live?”
Man: “I live in my house.”
Jesus: “The house, too.”
Man: Do You mean I must live in the garage?”
Jesus: You have a garage? That, too. What else do you have?”
Man: “Do You mean I must live in my car?”
Jesus: “You have a car?”
Man: “I have two.”
Jesus: “Then both cars will become Mine. What else do you have?”
Man: “You have my money, my house, my garage, my cars. You have everything.”
Jesus: “What else do you have? You aren’t alone in this world.”
Man: “No. I have a wife and I have three children.”
Jesus: “Your wife and your children, too.”
Man: “Them too?”
Jesus: “Yes, everything you have. What else do you have?”
Man: “I have nothing else. That’s all I have. I am left alone now with only myself.”
Jesus: “Oh no, you have misunderstood Me. This pearl will cost you yourself as well. Everything! Everything becomes mine – your wife, your children, your home, your cars, your possessions, your money, your time, you – everything. (pause) But there is one more thing – once you have given them to Me, and after they are all mine, I will bless them and I will return them to you – but never forget they are all mine, as are you. When I ask for any of them you must give them back to Me.
Now, do you still want to buy this pearl?”
Thus ends the narrative. Is your answer still, “Yes”? Do you still want the pearl? This is true biblical Christian commitment, and it is what Jesus calls for. He has given His life for you. How can you not give your life back to Him?
You and I need to consider the ultimate consequence if we say to God, “Gimme the good stuff. Just don’t expect anything from me.” We may think we can have a Savior without having a Lord. But keep this in mind – the Bible does not present Jesus as “Savior and Lord.” The Bible presents Jesus as “Lord and Savior.”
Please hear this. If you are not willing to commit all that you have to Him, why would you expect Him to commit all that He has to you?
In about seven hours it will be 2012. You’ll have a clean slate. Commit yourself to Jesus in your Bible-reading, your prayer life, and your Christian stewardship. You will be blessed!
~ Pray ~