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Making Things New (A New Year Sermon)

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“Making Things New”

“And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. . . . .”

         Revelation 21:5 KJV

As we approach another new year, I am sure many are already talking and speculating about what their New Year resolutions are going to be. But, if the truth is to be told; many who are doing this now were doing the same thing at this time last year and much of what they proposed to accomplish then did not come to pass! In most cases, resolutions for the new year lose their resolve in just a matter of weeks! So, what can be done to make the promises we make to ourselves and to others more resolute and definite?

Well, I was looking at this text the other day and I saw something that might be helpful to us in our quest to make things new. You might have noticed, that while the text says: “And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. . . ,” the title of this discourse is not about making ‘all’ things new, but rather just making things new. I did that because; only the LORD GOD can make ‘all’ things new! However, because we are made in His image and in His likeness, coupled with the fact that we were given the Dominion Mandate, I believe if we look at how He that sat upon the throne makes ‘all’ things new, we can discover a blueprint, a pattern, or a guide to how we can make ‘some’ things new!

Now, it is interesting to note, as we look at the text, that God did not say He was making all ‘new’ things; He said He was making all things new! The two Greek words most commonly translated as; ‘new’ in the NT are ‘neos’ and ‘kainos.’ The word; ‘neos’ primarily denotes something that is recent in time; or something that was not there before. Whereas ‘kainos’ refers primarily to quality; something that is of a better quality and nature than the old. Neos is new in time; kainos is new in nature. ‘Kainos’ is the term used in the text. The text is not saying that God will make ‘new’ things which did not exist before, but rather that God will refurbish, renew, or make better the quality and nature of all things that already exist! The New Heaven and the New Earth will be the ultimate make-over job!

Isn’t that what we seek to do when we make our new year resolutions? We seek to make our lives and things better than they were the year before! But alas! Most of the time, the new year ends up being a repeat of the year before! Why does this happen? Why is it that our new year resolutions rarely stick? Well, I think the primary reason is because most of us don’t understand how we are programmed to function! Let me show you what I’m talking about: By nature, we are creatures of habits! We learn by repetition; doing things a certain way; over and over again. Do you remember how hard it was when you first learn how to tie your shoe laces or how to write? You had to concentrate and focus and it took time and much repetition to master those new skills. But now, you can tie our shoe laces and write your name in a matter of seconds, without much thought or effort! Why? Because you programmed yourself through repetition to the extent that tying your shoe laces and writing your name are automatic-habitual skills! Most of us can do them with our eyes closed without any thought at all!

Well, just like we learned how to tie our shoe laces and write our names, we learned every other skill and function in our lives. And just as we now tie our shoe laces and write our names without any effort or thought, so do we perform every other skill and function in our lives! Most of us, when we got dressed this morning, we stepped into one particular pants leg before the other and we put on one particular shoe before we put on the other! We don’t really think about it, but chances are, we step into the same pants leg first and put on the same shoe first every time we put on our pants and shoes! Now, as an experiment to illustrate the principle I’m talking about, the next time you get dressed, make a mental note of which pants leg you step into first and which shoe you put on first. Then the next time you get dressed, consciously make an effort to step into the opposite pants leg and put on the opposite shoe first! First, you will have to stop and think to even remember to do this exercise. Then, if you succeed in remembering, you will experience some awkwardness or even difficulty in making the attempt! Now, here’s the kicker: Chances are, you will try this experiment only once or twice, if at all. And if you try it at all, most likely, you will revert back to putting on the same pants leg and same shoe that you’ve always put on first! Why? Because you are not willing to continually go through the awkwardness and difficulty of doing the opposite of what you’ve always done! But here’s the super-kicker; should you continue with the experiment, in a matter of time, the opposite pants leg and shoe will become your automatic choice and easy and the choice that was once automatic and easy will become the difficult one! That’s how we are programmed to function and that’s how life works! Most of our new year resolutions fail because we are not willing to go through the awkwardness of remembering and the difficulty of learning to put our leg through and put on the opposite pants leg and opposite shoe first! When we don’t persist with a conscious effort to endure the initial awkwardness of doing things differently, we automatically revert back to the comfort and ease of doing things the way we’ve always done them!

But in the text, the One who sat upon the throne says: “Behold, I make all things new. . .” All things will not automatically be new, in order for all things to be new, the Lord will have to ‘make’ them new! The word ‘make’ implies effort and work! Now if the Lord will have to put forth an effort and work to make ‘all’ things new, then how much more should we be expected to put forth effort and work to make some things new? But that’s our fundamental flaw; we want a maximum return with minimal effort! We want something for nothing! We want a ‘new year,’ but most of us a not willing to put forth the necessary effort and work to ‘make’ the year new!

If we were to look at the verse that just precedes our text, we can gleam another principle in making things new. The last phrase says: “for the former things are passed away.” There it is: In making all things new, it was necessary for the ‘former’ things; the things that were before, to pass away; to cease to be. It’s impossible for the former things and the all things new to co-exist! In looking again at our experiment; we might have missed the fact that it’s impossible for anyone to put both legs through and put on both shoes at the same time! No! One leg and one foot always goes before the other; both cannot be first! Therefore, in order for the experiment to work; the one that used to be first, must pass away from being first and the one the used to be last, must be made new into being first! As we said earlier, that will not automatically happen, because the former thing was automatic; the new thing must be made new!  That’s the way it is with anything in life! The things we desire to be new or different in our lives will not be new or different just because we want them to be new and different; they will only be new and different if and when we ‘make’ them new and different! Changes do not make themselves; changes must be made by us! I know we say it all the time, but is it really true? We always say: “Prayer changes things,” but is really prayer that actually changes things? I would like to suggest that in most cases; prayer doesn’t and isn’t designed to change things, but rather prayer actually changes us, and is designed to empower and motivate us to change things! I’ve noticed, as a pastor down through the years; particularly with church folks; when people don’t want to do something, they often veil their obstinacy and resistance with prayer. They say things like: “Pastor, we should pray about it!” But when they really want to do something, they don’t even mention prayer; they just go ahead and do it! In most cases, they pray about and refuse to do the things they should do, while they don’t pray and do the things they shouldn’t do!

Well, I’m just about through now, but there are a few more ideas I want to share with you about making things new, and then I will leave you alone. Notice in the text, the position of the One who said; I make all things new! According to the text, He sat upon the throne! The throne is the seat of authority and power. While some would suggest ‘authority’ and ‘power’ are synonymous terms; actually, they are not! Authority denotes legal right and privilege, whereas power denotes ability and might! In the world, there are some who have authority, but they don’t have ability and might, while there are others who have ability and might but don’t have authority! But He who sits on the throne in the text has both; authority and might!

Well, the good news this morning is that the offspring of the One who sat upon the throne have been given authority and might as well! In Genesis 1:26-28, we read:  “And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.” When God said, “Let them have dominion” that was the authority! When God blessed them, and said, “Be fruitful and multiply” that was the power! Now, I hear you! You’re saying: “Yes pastor, but that was before the Fall!” Yes it was, but Jesus came to fix up what Adam messed up! The authority and power that Adam lost in the Fall has been reclaimed and regained in the Last Adam; Jesus the Christ! Therefore, the Apostle Paul says: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” The Greek word translated as ‘new’ in the Apostle Paul’s statement is the same Greek word that is translated as ‘new’ in our text! Only ‘new’ people can really make things new!

How can we make things new for the new year? By changing our thoughts! The Bible says: As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.” If you really think you can; you can, but if you really think you can’t; you never will! Don’t worry about what others think; what you think is much more important! Train your thoughts, look at the list in Philippians 4:8 and make a habit to only think on those things! And then, we must watch our words! We must train ourselves to only speak life, for the power of life and death is in the tongue. What we say to and about ourselves is much more powerful and effective than what anyone else says to or about us! And finally, we must understand that we can’t live our lives a year, a month, a day, or even an hour at a time! We can only live our lives; one moment at a time! Therefore, we shouldn’t worry so much about making the year new; but rather, just focus on the making the present and next moment new!

I Don’t Need A New Year: I Need A New Me!

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“For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing”                                                                                                                                Romans 7:18-19 ESV

 “Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”                                                                                                                     2 Corinthians 5:17 KJV

“So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day.”                                                                                                                                      2 Corinthians 4:16 ESV

 When we were much younger, we used to be really excited about the new year!  Perhaps some of you still are! I mean, after all, it is a time when everybody is on the same page.  We are all thinking about making a fresh start!  We are all thinking about starting all over again!  We are all thinking about setting goals and making this new year better than the last year! But wait a minute! Weren’t we all doing the same thing this time last year? And the year before?  And the year before that?  Haven’t we all been doing the same thing every year, for as long as we can remember? Perhaps the reason some of us are not as excited about the new year as we used to be is because we have lived long enough to experience the disappointments of countless new year’s resolutions that are never kept!  For no matter how excited we were and no matter how good our intentions were, not matter how determined we were, by the middle of January, and if not then, certainly by Valentine’s Day, the thrill, the excitement, the determination, the resolve that was present on New Year’s Eve and on New Year’s Day was long gone! No! Some of us are not particularly excited about the New Year because we have discovered that what is needed is not a new year, but rather a new person!  No! I don’t need a new year; I need a new me!

This is exactly the experience that the Apostle Paul shares with us in the Roman text.  Now we look at Paul’s experience, I would like to suggest to you that Paul is not relating a pre-conversion experience but rather, this was a post-conversion experience for Paul.  Some think that what Paul shares in Romans 7 is the struggle he experienced before he was saved, but a careful look at the text will prove otherwise.  Let me prove my point: First of all, when we look at the grammatical structure of the text, we note that Paul does not use the imperfect or the aorist tenses to describe this ordeal, but rather he consistently uses the present tense.  Paul is not describing what he used to go through, he is talking about the struggles that he is presently experiencing.  Secondly, the person who is not saved, has no real struggles with trying to do the right thing! It is not even on his mind to do right! Doing wrong is so natural, that doing right doesn’t even cross his mind.  Now there are some who would appeal to the fact of the conscience. But even the conscience of an unsaved person doesn’t want to do right.  The Bible says that there is a way that seemeth right to a man, but the ends thereof are the ways of death.  Paul says later on, in this same letter, “For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.  For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.  Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.  So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.”

So, Paul says, I know that in me, that is in my flesh, dwelleth no good thing.” Now, the flesh that Paul is referring to is not his physical body, but rather the unregenerate sin-nature that was present within him.  You see, when we are saved, God does not eradicate or remove our sinful nature, instead He places His Holy Spirit within us, which is His very own nature.  One of the purposes of God’s Spirit within us is to empower us to bring our sinful nature under control. “For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. “But, walk (live according to) by (the power of) the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.” Paul said that he died daily. Everyday, the flesh (the sinful nature) has to be crucified. Crucifying the flesh is not something that God does for us, we have to do it ourselves by the power of His Spirit that dwells within us.

Therefore, Paul says, there is a struggle that is going on within me! The will to do is present within me! I want to lose weight! I want to come to Sunday School every Sunday! I want to become more active in my church! I want to be more than just a bench-member at my local church! I really want to; the willingness is there, but the how to and the actual doing of it, is absent! Not only do I struggle to do the things I want to do, but the things I don’t want to do seem to over-power me! I eat too many neck-bones and too much pork! I eat too much and don’t exercise enough! I talk about folks instead of praying for them! Oh! Sometimes I don’t even like myself, because the things I really want to do, I don’t do them and the things I really don’t want to do; I end up doing them! That’s why I’m not really very excited about this new year! Because unless I do things differently, this new year is going to be just like last year and the years before that! I don’t need a new year; I need a new me!

Well, before we get all depressed and give up all hope, there is some good news! Paul said that though it is a struggle, there is an answer to our dilemma! The answer is found “in Christ.”  He said, “If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation: old things have passed away: behold, all things are become new.” Yes! That’s the secret to success for the new year! You must be “in Christ!” What does it mean to be “in Christ?” The term, “in Christ” was a favorite expression of Paul used over seventy times in the Pauline writings.  It refers to status and position. It’s a good place to be! There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ! We have been justified freely by the grace that is in Christ. God causes us to always have the victory in Christ. We are sanctified in Christ.  We are all the children of God by faith in Christ. We shall all be made alive in Christ. The dead in Christ shall rise first. Yes! Everything we need is in Christ!  And so, if we abide in him and his word abides in us, we can ask what we will and it will be done unto us.  In Christ is a good place to be! Paul says, here in this text, that if any many be in Christ, he is a new creation! That is, if you are in Christ, you are a new you! The answer to the dilemma is to translate the position into experience! I am a new me in my position in Christ and through the power of the Spirit of God that lives within me, I can be a new me in my experience in life!

And, if you are a new you, you really don’t need a new year to start something new! For I heard Paul saying on another occasion that though the outward man is perishing, the inward man is being renewed day by day! Do you see that? The new you don’t need a new year to make a fresh start because the new you is being renewed everyday! Yes! That’s why I don’t really get excited about the New Year, because I get excited every morning! Every morning when I wake up and find myself not dead, that’s like New Year’s Day to me! Every morning that I’m able to get up out of my bed and dress myself; that’s like New Year’s Day to me!

So, if you really want to have life and have it more abundantly, don’t wait until the New Year to start over again! It doesn’t matter what day of the year it is, if you just meet Jesus, and get in him, he will make you a new creation! He will make you all over again! He will fix whatever is broken, he will mend all of the broken promises and dreams! When you’ve met him, you really won’t need a new year because he will make you, a new you!

Mastering Fear and Anxiety

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fearThis is the third of the series of sermons I preached some years ago on: Mastering the Emotions.

“Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

John 14:27 KJV

Psychologists tell us we were born with only two fears: The fear of loud noises and the fear of falling! Therefore, if that is the case, all other fears are learned responses from environment or taught by parents and/or other authority figures. Now, there are cases in which fear is good! Fear is needed because it protects us from danger. It is part of our natural “fight or flight response” to our environment. The Bible says: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.” However, our fear of the Lord should not be a trembling fear of God’s punishment, but rather a reverence and respect for God’s character and nature. In other words, we shouldn’t fear God like a child fears the “boogie-man,” we should fear God in the same manner that a child respects his parents. The Lord desires for us to serve him, not out of fear but out of love! In fact, the Bible says that fear does not even come from God! 2 Timothy 1:7 says: “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” So these fears; the fear of falling, the fear of loud noises, the fear that alerts and protects us from danger and harm, and the fear of God are “good” fears that are natural or should be acquired.
In my research, I found over 518 phobias or fears that are officially recognized! There are even such fears as the fear of success, the fear of church, and the fear of preachers, on the list! Our world is so engulfed with fear, that most people think that fear and anxiety are the natural and normal responses to life! But, for the child of God, the one who claims Jesus as Lord and Savior, being controlled and dominate by fear is not normal! Paul said that we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. And if we are to be who God created and called us to be, then we must master fear and anxiety.
Yes! For the Child of God, for the one who knows the Lord, fear should have no dominion in their life! Over and over again, in the Biblical text, God encouraged people not to fear! He did and He does so because fear will keep us from doing what we could, should, and want to do! Fear will hinder us from being and doing all that God created and called us to be and do! Fear is the enemy of our dominion! The ancient Chinese writer, Sun Tze wrote in his treatise: “The Art of War”, that a primary military strategy is to know your enemy. Before you engage in battle, you should learn all you can about your opponent! Well, the emotions of fear and anxiety can be enemies of our potential, therefore we need to know all we can about them and how they operate!
There are several acronyms I found using the letters: F-E-A-R, that will help us to know what fear really is! Fear is False Evidence Appearing Real: Fear paints a picture not supported by reality. Fear is an incorrect response because fear is a reaction, not to evidence that is real, but to evidence that only looks real! We can master fear by understanding that many times things are not always as they appear!
Fear is Failure Expected and Received! There are spiritual laws that govern the universe that are just a real and powerful as the Law of Gravity! Two such laws are the Law of Attraction and the Law of Faith. The Law of Attraction says that we tend to attract the circumstances, people and situations into our lives that are in agreement with our dominant and consistent thoughts. The Law of Faith says that whatever we believe with conviction, whether it be good or bad, positive or negative, it will eventually come to pass and be manifested in our lives. That’s why Paul wrote: “Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” The things we constantly think about manifest themselves in our lives! Therefore, we should think good thoughts! That’s why we shouldn’t think about what we don’t want! We should only think about what we do want! The more we think about what we don’t want, the greater the possibility that what we don’t want will show up! In fact, we actually attract it because of the law of attraction! Some Bible scholars think the Law of Attraction may have been a factor in Job’s life because in the midst of his troubles Job said, “The thing I greatly feared has come upon me, and that which I was afraid is come unto me!”
In a sense, fear and faith are not really opposites, but in a very real way, they are two sides of the same coin! Fear is a type of faith because, like faith, fear is a conviction and an expectation. The difference is the conviction and expectation is in a negative and unwanted outcome. Fear is the substance of things not hoped for and the evidence of things not seen! Faith is belief directed toward what we want; fear is belief directed toward what we don’t want! We can master fear by simply not thinking about and not focusing our attention on what we don’t want! We can master fear by starving our fears and feeding our faith!
Fear is Forgetting Everything is All Right! The Disciples were fearful in the storm because they forgot Jesus was on board! And even when they remembered he was on board, they forgot who he was! They forgot he was the master of the sea! Yes! We fear because we forget that greater is He that is within us than he that is in the world! We fear because we forget that Jesus said, “In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” It is because he has overcome the world that we can overcome the world! We fear because we forget that our Heavenly Father knows what we have need of and He has promised to supply our every need! Yes! My brothers and sisters, we can master fear by simply remembering that no matter how it looks, the Lord says; “Everything is all right!”
Yes! We need to know fear! But not only do we need to know fear, we also need to know how fear operates! We need to know that fear is contagious! Therefore, we need to inoculate ourselves from fear because fear can be passed on and we can be infected with fear from other people! Listen to the instructions the Lord gave Moses to give to the people concerning war in Deuteronomy 20:1-4, 8: “When thou goest out to battle against thine enemies, and seest horses, and chariots, and a people more than thou, be not afraid of them: for the LORD thy God is with thee, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. And it shall be, when ye are come nigh unto the battle, that the priest shall approach and speak unto the people, And shall say unto them, Hear, O Israel, ye approach this day unto battle against your enemies: let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither be ye terrified because of them; For the LORD your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you. . . . And the officers shall speak further unto the people, and they shall say, What man is there that is fearful and fainthearted? let him go and return unto his house, lest his brethren’s heart faint as well as his heart.” According to the NLT, the officers said to the people: “Is anyone here afraid or worried? If you are, you may go home before you frighten anyone else!” Contagious fear caused the Children of Israel to spend some 40 years wandering in the wilderness. The report of the ten spies was motivated by fear and it was their fear that infected the multitude, who in turn, rebelled against the expressed command of the Lord to occupy the land! Yes! Fear is like a bad cold! If you hang around fearful people; you will catch it! Therefore, one way we can master fear is by isolating and insulating ourselves from fearful people!
Now, you might have noticed that our subject is “Mastering Fear and Anxiety.” Some people don’t think so, but there is a difference between fear and anxiety. Fear is an emotional response to a known or definite threat, whereas, anxiety is often a response to an imprecise or unknown threat. It comes from the mind’s vision of possible danger. In other words, anxiety comes from our minds thinking of something that could happen! Anxiety is being worried about being fired from your job when there is no concrete evidence of it happening! Anxiety occurs because we focus, not on what is wrong, but on what could go wrong! The difference between fear and anxiety is that you have fear when you’re in a dark alley and you see a man headed in your direction with a knife! Anxiety is when you are in a dark alley and you see a man headed in your direction and you “think” he may have a knife! Fear is when you run a red light and you look in your rear-view mirror and the police is right behind you with his lights on! Anxiety is when you haven’t broken any laws and you are uneasy when you look in your rear-view mirror and the police is right behind you with his lights on! Fear may result from a real threat, but anxiety comes from just the possibility of a threat.
Well, I need to come to a close now! I don’t have to tell you the damage that fear and anxiety can cause. Fear and anxiety can elevate your blood pressure and body temperature. Fear and anxiety can cause fear and panic attacks during which there is severe shortness of breath, causing even further panic, which in turn could lead to strokes and heart attacks! In other words, besides preventing us from doing what we could, should and want to do, uncontrolled fear and anxiety is unhealthy and lethal! But, we can master fear and anxiety! The Bible says that we are to be anxious for nothing! When we’re fearful and anxious, we’re really saying we don’t trust God and that God is a liar! In the text Jesus said: “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” The peace Jesus gives is not the absence of conflict, but rather the calmness in the midst of conflict! Peace in the midst of the storm! He said: “Don’t let you heart be trouble, neither let it be afraid!” If we are anxious for nothing, but by prayer and supplication, make our request known to God, the peace that passes all understanding will guard our hearts and minds through Christ Jesus! It is the peace that comes from the Prince of Peace that gives us the power to master fear and anxiety!

Mastering Your Emotions

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A few years ago, I preached a series of sermons on “Mastering the Emotions.” The gist of the series was to highlight just how much our emotions affect our lives and to highlight the fact that if we don’t master our emotions, our emotions will master us!
The following is the text of the introductory sermon of that series and I will post the rest of the sermons of that series in the next posts:
“Mastering the Emotions”

“Whoever is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city.”
Proverbs 16:32 ESV
“He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls.”
Proverbs 25:28 KJV

In Genesis 1:26-28, the record states: “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.” This passage has been labeled as the Dominion Mandate because from it we learn God’s original intent was for humanity to have dominion over the earth! In addition to the broken fellowship and the lost relationship with the Creator, another consequence of man’s rebellion was the loss of dominion! For you see, Adam did not lose Heaven in Garden of Eden; he lost dominion! But thank God today! The Last Adam was sent restore everything the first Adam lost! We often preach and teach that Jesus came to restore man’s relationship with God and that is true, but he also came to restore man’s dominion. However, this relationship can’t be restored and the dominion cannot be realized except through faith in Jesus! One of the things that so distresses me about the modern church today, is that we really don’t know how blessed we are! We don’t know how great our salvation really is! We settle for a ticket to Heaven when we die, but our salvation is so much greater than that! Now, just like anybody else, I want to go to Heaven when I die! But I discovered that eternal life is a present possession of the believer and that eternal life provides power for victory in this life as well as an eternal dwelling in the next! Through Jesus, in addition to going to Heaven when we die, we also regain the dominion that Adam lost while we live!
Now this dominion, this power, this authority and ability to master and rule is needed in every aspect of our lives! But nowhere is it more needed than in our personal development. Of the many things that seek to hinder us from being all that God created us to be, the greatest threat to personal growth and maturity is the person in the mirror! We try to put the blame on other people, on things and even on the devil, but our main problem is our self! Most of the pain and misery we experienced in life is self-inflicted because we fail to exercise self-control.
Our text words say that the one who rules his spirit (that is his emotions) is better or greater than the one who captures a city! On the other hand, the one who has no rule over his spirit is like a city with broken walls! Taken together, these proverbs illustrate our need to master the emotions! We must master our emotions because if we don’t control our emotions, our emotions will control us!
Now before you take issue with that statement, permit me to show you just how much our lives are influenced by our emotions. First of all, we must understand that emotions are a natural part of our make-up! The LORD GOD did not create us as machines with no feelings or emotions. And our feelings or emotions work like a closed-circuit. Our emotions dictate our actions, while at the same time our actions influence our emotions. There are some people who like to think that their actions are dictated directly and only by their reasoning or their will. But that is not how the human psyche works! It is our emotions or feelings that directly dictate our actions! Let me show you what I’m talking about! Our nation, yes, even the world is facing an epidemic of alcohol and substance abuse. But why do people take drugs and drink alcohol? They do it to make themselves “feel” a certain way! Why does a person buy a luxury automobile or a sports car? They do it because owning and driving those vehicles make them feel a certain way! Some people get depressed about their bills. So, to make themselves feel better, they eat or go shopping! They don’t eat because they are hungry; they eat because eating makes them feel better! They go shopping, often buying clothes or items they really don’t need and in many cases, can’t afford, but they do it to make themselves feel better! Some people even come to church, not to find solutions for their issues, but merely for an emotional experience to make them feel better! These people come to church with what I call, “a night-club mentality!” They don’t come to gain strength or to find answers to their problems; they come just to have a “good time!” All of these actions are dictated, not directly by the reason or the will, but rather, by the emotions! Our emotions cannot and should not be denied, however they should be dealt with in the appropriate manner! The emotions will make you or they will break you! If you don’t master and control your emotions; your emotions will surely master and control you!
So how does one master and control the emotions? The first key is in learning how our emotions work in the dynamics of the human experience. As I said earlier, our actions are not directly dictated by our reason or our will, but rather by our emotions. In other words, we do what we do because of what and how we feel. Our actions are either in response to emotions or we act to stimulate or evoke emotions. In other words, we do what we do because we feel a certain way or we do what we do to feel a certain way! In either case, the direct dictating factor is the emotions! But the Bible says that we shouldn’t live at the mercy of our emotions! The Bible says we should rule our spirit! We should master our emotions! But the question remains: How? How do emotions work and how and where do they fit in the human equation? Well, if we are to believe the Bible, we were created as spiritual beings wrapped in human flesh. Therefore our essential core is spirit! It is through our spirit that we commune with God because God is Spirit. It is the spirit that governs our mind and it is our mind that governs our emotions. It is our emotions that govern our actions and it is our actions that produce the results or the circumstances in our lives. Therefore, if we want to change the circumstances or the results we get in our lives, we must start with our spirit and our mind. Now, without the help of the Holy Spirit, the human spirit does not have the capacity to access the power and wisdom needed to successfully master the emotions! The only way for man to successfully “rule over” or have dominion is to first submit to the authority and dominion of God. Once we are in right relationship with God, the human spirit is energized by the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit empowers and teaches Divine Wisdom. It is through the power of the Holy Spirit and the wisdom of the Word of God that our spirits are made alive and our minds are renewed. Now, our minds need to be renewed because it is the mind that governs our emotions and it is our emotions that govern our actions and it is our actions that create the circumstances of our lives. The Bible has always said it, but now psychologists, physicians and clinicians of many disciplines, all testify that how and what we think has a direct bearing on how and what we feel. Thinking “happy thoughts” produces happy feelings. Thinking sad or depressing thoughts produce feelings of sadness and depression. The key to the equation is that we have absolute control over our thoughts. However, most people don’t exercise this control and thereby allow their minds to be easily influence to think counter-productive thoughts, which in turn produce counter-productive emotions, which in turn produce counter-productive actions, which in turn produces counter-productive circumstances in their lives! Now remember, it is our thoughts that govern our emotions! Therefore if we are feeling a certain way, we can change the way we feel by simply changing our thoughts! That’s why the Bible says we should only think on certain things! Paul said: “Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”
Yes! When our spirit is correctly aligned with the Spirit of God, in Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God, we can master our emotions! We can exercise the dominion that God created us to have! We can master the emotions! It can be done! That’s why it’s repeated over and over again in the Bible: “Fear not!” We can master the emotion of fear! Jesus said: “Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid!” By implications he was saying: You are in control! Jesus also said: “Don’t be anxious! Don’t be angry at your brother without a cause! We can master anger, anxiety, depression and fear! God wouldn’t command us to do something if it was not possible for us to do it! We can master our emotions! And master them we must, because if we don’t, we will be mastered by them! And if we live, mastered by our emotions, then we are living under the dominion of the flesh! And the Bible says that those who are living in the flesh cannot please God! It is within the dominion of the flesh that the devil operates and exercises dominion over our lives! Therefore, we must master our emotions by living in the Spirit! Yes! We can master the emotions and master them we must if we are to achieve the victory and dominion our salvation provides!

Preaching with an iPad

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I have been preaching with an iPad for two (2) years now and I love it, let me tell you why!

My Preaching Delivery Evolution: Outline-Paper manuscript-iPad

First of all, I am a manuscript preacher (my Daddy used to call them: “Paper Boys!) I didn’t start out that way, it just evolved as time went on. When I first started preaching in 1978, I would write out an introduction, do a 3-point outline with 3 sub-points and then write out my conclusion. I would take this single piece of paper to the pulpit with me, inserted in my Bible. Occasionally, I would get bold, commit the outline to memory and go to the pulpit with only my Bible.

I committed to using manuscripts exclusively in 1993. I was working on a sermon and I wanted to make sure I got to all the points, so for the first time, I wrote the sermon out completely: word for word. I did OK with memory and notes, but occasionally I would forget something or go “too long!” At any rate, when I first started using manuscripts, it was awkward, but the more I did it, the more I liked it! It kept me from going all over the Bible and was a more efficient use of preaching time for me. I started out hand writing my sermons (double-spaced) on yellow legal pad and taking the pages to the pulpit with me in a leather portfolio. Later on, after I brushed up on my keyboarding skills, I typed them double-spaced, landscape booklet form and stapled them together down the center. When I preached and turned the pages, it gave the appearance that I was turning the pages of my Bible (cool huh?)

The problem with the a fore mentioned process was across the years, I had accumulated boxes and boxes of notes and used a tremendous amount of ink, not to mention money spent on paper, ink and printers! And then, I bought an iPad 2 in April 2011!

Here is how I do it now:

During my research, I type my notes on my iPad, using the standard note application. That way I can access my notes on my iPad or my iPhone. When I type the actual manuscript, I use MicroSoft Word on my desktop or laptop (whichever one my wife is not using when I am ready to write). For reading comfort on the iPad, I use 22 point Chancery font, double-spaced. Once I have finished typing, I save the file in two places: In my sermon file folder on my computer as a “word” file and in my Dropbox as a PDF file. After I open it in Dropbox on my iPad, I send it to “Good Reader,” which is the application I use to read and deliver from. I like Good Reader because I like to turn the pages swiping from side to side as oppose to scrolling up and down in Dropbox. I also number my pages in Good Reader, so as to not lose my place should I accidentally tap my iPad screen.

In the pulpit with the iPad:

When I go to preach with my iPad, I carry it to the pulpit in a Portenzo brand case that actually looks like a book! (I don’t want to call too much attention to the fact that I am preaching from an iPad) It is a good practice to make sure the iPad is adequately charged with all sounds and notifications cut off. Just to be on the safe side, I also switch the wifi off or put it on airplane mode. I also lock the screen orientation to portrait so the screen will not rotate to landscape should I happen to pick the iPad up in the excitement of preaching!

Well, that’s the way I do it with my iPad! I thought about the iPad Mini, but I couldn’t justify spending that much money for what is essentially a smaller version of what I already have and besides that, my wife wouldn’t let me!

If you are using an iPad for preaching and/or teaching, leave a comment and let me know how you do it!