1997-13

SERMON NOTES

TITLE: THREE SPIRITUAL CHECKPOINTS

1 Listen to what the LORD says: "Stand up, plead your case before the mountains; let the hills hear what you have to say.

2 Hear, O mountains, the LORD's accusation; listen, you everlasting foundations of the earth. For the LORD has a case against his people; he is lodging a charge against Israel.

3 "My people, what have I done to you? How have I burdened you? Answer me. (He was asking if He had failed them in some way).

4 I brought you up out of Egypt and redeemed you from the land of slavery. I sent Moses to lead you, also Aaron and Miriam.

5 My people, remember what Balak king of Moab counseled and what Balaam son of Beor answered. Remember [your journey] from Shittim to Gilgal, that you may know the righteous acts of the LORD."

6 With what shall I come before the LORD and bow down before the exalted God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old?

7 Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?

8 He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. (NIV)

INTRODUCTION: This morning, our world is rushing toward judgment by a righteous and holy God. Even though we are Christians, we are also hurrying toward the time when each of us shall appear before the Judgment Seat of Christ, and give an accounting for our earthly lives. In the continuation of the passage I just read to you, Micah the prophet warned the people of God that unless they changed their ways, God would destroy them, making them the laughingstock of the world. In verse 16 of this chapter, God says that ". . . Therefore I will give you over to ruin and your people to derision; you will bear the scorn of the nations." (NIV) To help them escape this end, in verse 8 Micah gave them three spiritual checkpoints by which they should examine their lives.

Now, so that you will not want to say that these only applied to the people Micah was addressing; that these were the Old Testament, under the old covenant, and that we live under a new one, I will remind you that the Lord Jesus cited the same checkpoints to the Jews of His day, seven centuries later. They also apply to us today.

Here, Micah asks, "What does the LORD require of you.?" He then gives the answer, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, not only for that day, but for our day. Christ paralleled these words when, speaking to the religious leaders in his day, He said, in Matthew 23:23, "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices-- mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law-- justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. The same message is given in these words in Luke 11:42, "Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone. (NIV)

Now this morning, I am not going to preach you a sermon on the subject of giving, though that may come up. But I do want to point out something to you in this passage. I have heard people say that though God's people were commanded to tithe in the Old Testament, we don't have to do so today, since we are under the new covenant. Look closely at these two passages. In the first, it says, "you give a tenth . . . you have neglected the more important matters of the law -- justice, mercy and faithfulness . . . You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former." The second is even more clear, for it says, "you give God a tenth of your mint, rue, and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone."

So what does this mean? It means very simply that God has not done away with the practice of giving of a tithe to His work. He says here that we should not leave this undone. May I also remind you that this is not talking of your alms, which is the giving of money or help to the poor, for Christ also said that we should not let out right hand know what our left hand is doing in this area. In other words, just meet the needs you see, but do not keep track of how much it costs you. But you cannot pay tithes without keeping track, for the tithe is a percentage, (10%) of your gross income (including earnings, gifts, and all God's other bountiful blessings). Now you may say, "Well, the New Testament does not say the tithe belongs to the Lord. It says all we have belongs to Him." Then, if you really believe that, you will not find 10% at all hard to live with, will you?

If we are the kind of Christians we should be, we will find that as we serve the Lord we realize more and more that it is simple to please Him. All we must do is obey Him. There are many fine points of doctrine which we can debate, but at the heart of Christianity there are three things which really do count: our outward conduct ("to act justly"); our inner character ("to love mercy"); and our personal devotion to the Lord ("to walk humbly with our God").

I. CHECKPOINT I - YOUR CONDUCT. In 1933, our government abandoned the "gold standard." This means that before then, the monetary value of our nation's money was based on a standard consisting entirely of gold; a certain weight of gold was declared to be worth a certain value. Now, instead of a gold standard, we supposedly have a managed gold reserved standard, which means that gold is no longer coined, but is rather held as bullion, which allows the value of gold to fluctuate in the world market. The real fact is that we do not now have the gold to back our currency.

Now though our government has abandoned the standard it previously held, we must hope that as Christians we never abandon the Golden Rule. It never fluctuates. God still requires us to treat others exactly the same way we would like to be treated (Luke 6:31). How should our conduct be toward others. Let's look at the passage from Luke 6, beginning at verse 27, going through verse 46:

27 "But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,

28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.

29 If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic.

30 Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back.

31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.

32 "If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' love those who love them.

33 And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' do that.

34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even 'sinners' lend to 'sinners,' expecting to be repaid in full.

35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.

36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

37 "Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.

38 Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you."

39 He also told them this parable: "Can a blind man lead a blind man? Will they not both fall into a pit?

40 A student is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher.

41 "Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?

42 How can you say to your brother, 'Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,' when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.

43 "No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit.

44 Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers.

45 The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.

46 "Why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say? (NIV)

1. Everywhere, our conduct should be such that we have no cause to be ashamed of it; at home, at school, at work, in our association with family, friends, and even enemies.

2. We must conduct ourselves in such a way that we can stand before the judgment seat of Christ unafraid and unashamed. So our conduct must not be selfish, unkind, dishonest, or shameful in any way. Instead, it must be like that of Christ. We must deal with others the way we want them to deal with us.

3. Micah accused Israel of cheating in business; of telling lies; of resorting to violence and deceit to gain an advantage over others (Micah 6:10-12). Seven hundred year later, Jesus said they seized widow's houses one day, and made long prayers in the Temple the next (Matthew 23:14).

Human nature has not changed much over the centuries; every generation has its hypocrites, but God accepts no substitute for Christian conduct. Some actions may be legal in the eyes of the law, but not right in God's sight. His law is higher than man's.

Many years ago, a man told D. L. Moody, the great evangelist, "If I become a Christian, it will bankrupt me. I manufacture soap. Every good thing I say about it is true, but there is one thing I do not say: it rots the clothes. If I should tell all the truth, nobody would buy my soap." He realized that to be a genuine, faithful Christian requires total honesty.

Remember when Samuel rebuked King Saul, who had disobeyed God by not destroying ALL the livestock and other spoil. Saul tried, like we would, to cover his sins by offering gifts to the Lord. But remember Samuel's words: "in 1 Sam 15:22: ". . . To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams." (NIV) It is still true today. God loves obedience more than sacrifice, though obedience may require sacrifice. It is not the sacrifice that gets God's attention; it is the obedience. Note the difference between King Saul, and Samuel. Samuel was able to stand before the people, and challenge them to find any fault with any part of his record of public service (1 Samuel 12:3-5). Old- fashioned honesty never goes out of style in God's kingdom. We must always "Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody" (Romans 12:17, NIV).

II. CHECKPOINT II - YOUR CHARACTER. Micah said that God requires mercy; Jesus said the same. We know that God is a God of mercy; He delights to show mercy. Mercy is part of His character. Now while justice pertains to the outward side of our lives, mercy pertains to the inner side. Conduct is our outer self, visible to all; most of all, visible to God. Character is our inner self, hidden from all other humans, but totally known to God and to ourselves.

Note that we are here told to "love mercy." We are not told to "show mercy." Many times it does not require a Christian character to show mercy, for mercy may be dictated by the circumstances. But to love mercy is to show the nature of our God. Romans 12:8 tells us, talking about our gifts, "if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully." (NIV)

1. God is not satisfied to merely look at our deeds (the outer side of our lives)..

2. God looks into our hearts, to see why we act the way we do; He checks our character (our inner side of life).

3. God judges us according to our motives, rather than just according to our actions. This is where true Christlikeness counts most.

A clerk was caught stealing from his company. The man came with shame into the office of the company's senior partner when summoned. He expected a blistering firing at the least, or that even worse he might be prosecuted and sent to prison.

The older man asked the clerk if he was guilty; the man stammered out that he was, and had no excuse. To which the employer then said, "I am not going to send you to prison. What would happen if I gave you another chance? Would you do it again; if I took you back, could I trust you?"

The clerk, broken, said he could; that he sincerely apologized and asked forgiveness. He said if given the opportunity, he would never steal again.

To his great surprise, he was forgiven. Then the senior partner explained, "You are the second man who has fallen and been pardoned in this business. I was the first. What you have done, I did. The mercy you have received, I received. May God help us all."

How great and wonderful is the grace of God; it is beyond our understanding. Psalm 103:10-12 puts it this way, "he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. (NIV)

Since God has showed us so much mercy, how can we fail to show mercy to others? We must remember than kindness and the love of God have won more sinners to Christ than zeal, eloquence, learning, or a judgmental attitude.

III. CHECKPOINT III - YOUR COMMUNION. Micah said that we are to walk humbly with our God; are you doing that today? When Jesus spoke to the religious leaders in Matthew 23:23, He used the word "faithfulness", with the meaning of "fidelity." When we walk in true humility with God, we will also walk in fidelity to both God and man.

Micah talked of constant communion with our heavenly Father. Now daily conduct is the outward side of our lives; character is the inward side of our lives; communion with God is the upward side of our lives. One, the outward side pertains to our relationships with people; another, the inner side, pertains to our relationship with ourselves; the final one, upward communion, pertains to our relationship with God.

1. The most important relationship is an up to date, up-to-the-minute relationship with God.

2. This relationship produces everything else we need to walk a holy life.

3. This communion produces character; character affects conduct.

Conduct is the fruit of the tree of character, which grows in the soil and atmosphere of communion with God, the source of all.

Communion with God requires humility; God will not walk with a proud or scornful person. When we think more of ourselves than we ought, we are in danger of having to walk alone. We must humble ourselves to walk with God. Since humility is so important, what is it? Romans 12:3 gives us God's definition of it: For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you. (NIV)

Here is an example of humility. In AD 177, in Lyons, France an incident happened which shows humility, perhaps even too much. A group of Christians had been scourged, branded, and exposed to wild beasts for the gospel's sake, yet they asked that they not be called martyrs. They felt such an exalted title should be confined to Christ, and to those like Stephen, upon whose testimony Christ set a special seal. They said, "We are but mean and lowly confessors!" They likely downgraded themselves, but we may be sure Christ was pleased with their humility, and blessed them with His sweet presence. The record shows they died with heavenly peace on their faces, which, like that of Stephen, shown as angels.

The next time we feel tempted to resent some petty grievance, we should remember them. If we are too proud, we need our pride wounded, fatally if possible, so we can walk with God in true humility of spirit.

1 John 1: 5-8, written to the church, to believers, to Christians, reads like this: 5 "This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all righteousness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives. (NIV)

This passage lets us know that none of us are perfect. If we were perfect here, it would most certainly lead to pride in our lives, rather than to the humility God desires. If we tell people we are perfect, without sin, the first time they see us do something un-Christlike, or see us fail to do something we should, they will dismiss our testimony as that of a hypocrite. We will then be placing a stumbling block in their way, which Scripture tells us not to do.

Paul set us a good example in this matter, writing to the church (believers, saved people) at Corinth. He told them, "I am the least of the apostle" (1 Corinthians 15:9). Later, again writing to believers, the church at Ephesus, he said that he was "less than the least of all saints" (Ephesians 3:8). Finally, in one of his last writings, to Timothy, he said that he was the "chief of sinners" (1 Timothy 1:15). Some people grow more and more proud as they walk with the Lord, and continually become more distant followers of His, because their pride in their sinless lives, in their perfection, is separating them from Him. This is the example of Paul. He kept bowing lower and lower as time went on, and his walk with God became closer and closer. This is God's desire for us all; He wants our fellowship. But if we humble ourselves and walk with Him in constant and loving submission, Peter tells us (1 Peter 5:6), that in due time He will exalt us, and give us the privilege of living with Him eternally. We can rule with Him, but we must earn that right by living humbly for Him here.

CONCLUSION: This morning, let us examine ourselves on these spiritual checkpoints, making sure we meet God's standard in all three areas.

God says that He will not be mocked; that whatever we sow, we will reap. If we fail to live a righteous life, we will reap the reward for an unrighteous one. If we fail to love mercy, we will not be shown mercy. If we live proudly rather than humbly, we will fall rather than being lifted up.

Most of all, we must walk in unbroken communion with God, for all these other things come from Him. Part of our communion with God is our prayer life; another important part is our study life. We must study Scripture. We must study all of the Bible, and must never, never, never, base a doctrine on one or two verses of Scripture. We must take Scripture as a whole, and base our beliefs on the whole counsel of God. Picking and choosing will lead us away from God, not toward Him. We will become confused ourselves; we will believe, and then try to teach, wrong doctrine.

God has been revealing Himself to righteous men, and to serious scholars down through the ages. Anytime I read something in the Bible, and come up with an interpretation of it that suits me, but flies in the face of all that the church and its scholars have found over the centuries, then certainly I should be wise enough to realize that I am likely wrong. God has not hidden the truth of His Word for the ages, just to reveal it to me alone in this day and time. I must learn from men who know Hebrew and Greek, for that is the language of Scripture, and see what they say the original language means. Our English is a limited language in comparison to these. For example, we have one word for love; the Greek has 3. In the passage where Jesus questioned Peter about his love for the Lord, Jesus used two of these words, which have different meanings, but our English does not show that difference.

Oh that we could learn to truly walk with the Lord; to live righteous lives, having the right conduct in all circumstances. Oh that we could learn to love mercy, and delight to show it, so that we might receive it. Oh that we could learn to walk humbly before God, rather that walking in pride and self-righteousness.

If we could, then possibly we could do as Enoch did, and walk right into heaven one day. For the Bible records that Enoch "walked with God: and he was not; for God took him" (Genesis 5:24).

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