10-16-2021 West Palm Beach Seventh Day BAPTIST Pastor Garfield “Hone Your Faith” Judges 11;1-11
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We have all had moments in our lives when we felt inadequate. I have had times when I felt unfulfilled and worthless, unprepared, scared, lonely and insufficient without a purpose. Feeling like I don’t belong and not possessing what the situation requires. We have a responsibility to work through these feelings and work through these experiences. Solomon had a situation where he had to hone his faith. When he was coming from a morning meditation, he said to God that he was as a child taking over his father King David’s position. Solomon felt inadequate and was feeling like some of us feel today. Solomon told God he needed help being king and asked God for an understanding heart to judge the people. Solomon worked thru his feelings. Brothers and Sisters we must accept where we are and seek the Lord’s help as you Hone your Faith.
Brothers and Sisters when we talk about Faith, we are really talking about this whole thing of a belief system. I want to expound on what is our faith today. Our faith sometimes drags us out of our comfort zone and we are placed in a situation where it is not unusual to sink or even drown. Sometimes we feel like God has placed us in impossible situations. Our faith must stand and we must call on the Lord. Keep our eyes off the problem and focus on God. We must let our soul rest in God because we belong to Him and we are His, the Creator of the universe. Brothers and Sisters we must Hone our Faith. As the challenges come, let us get to that position where we like Solomon, call on God for what we want. We rest in our faith and we recognize that we belong to God. And we call on His name.
The word Hone means to sharpen or make ready. By honing we are actually putting ourselves in a state of greater effectiveness or greater readiness. Hone your faith. Faith in Hebrews 11;1 “Faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen”. I want to shift your attention and broaden your horizons a little bit more. Your faith is your belief in God and the belief system that surrounds that. Brothers and Sisters, as our faith is a part of us, I have ten elements here that make up the belief system; the Faith that you have. The ten elements are things that we need to sharpen and make ready as we live for our Lord and Savior.
****FAITH:
1) Have knowledge of God the Creator.
2) The world is irredeemable.
3) God came to redeem man. Jesus died and was resurrected.
4) We anticipate Jesus’s return and the world will be different.
5) We accept Jesus as Lord and Savior.
6) We became part of a group called Christians, followers of Christ.
7) As Christians we join local believers in Jesus.
8) We are influenced by the Bible and Holy Spirit.
9) We live in accordance with His command with family, jobs, education.
10) We live to help and server other with abilities we got from the Holy Spirit.
Brothers and Sisters, if you have faith in God, these are the tenets that we need to pay attention to. For too long as Christians, we believed that being Christian is about saying I accept Jesus Christ then we wait to die. But your faith is much deeper than just that. It covers these ten elements or even more. Brothers and Sisters, I want to say to you that you can Hone your faith and understand that faith is now broader than how we normally look at it. It is about that system that I live in, the entirety of what I believe. We can hone our faith by answering the three following questions that are inferred from Judges 11;1-11. We should be able to work through these questions, to ponder these questions and to hone our faith as we find answers to these questions.
1) Do I Have a Crisis of Faith? In our text a man was thrown out of the community by his brothers because of his mother being a harlot. Jeph-thah went to live in another place and he was a mighty man of valour. Jeph-thah had worthless men band together with him and they went out raiding with him. Does this sound like somebody having a crisis of faith? Brothers and Sisters, when you have a crisis of faith, we always focus on the general things and we stop believing in God. I want to propose to you today that if you are lacking in any of the ten elements of faith, then you are not where you ought to be with God. Hence you have a crisis of your faith. I want you to understand that if God has called you to do something, whatever it is and you are not doing it, even if you still believe in God, then the elements of your belief system are withering and dying. You are having a crisis of faith.
The man Jeph-thah was a mighty man of valour which means this man had been endowed with gifts of God that he is to be using. You can say he ran from his people because he was chased out. But listen to where he was. He was in a place where worthless men found interest in him. He entertained them even though he was still an Israelite. He was having a crisis of faith. We need to evaluate our lives and what ministry God has called us to. Are you living by God’s commands in your community, family and school? If you are not doing this then you are having a crisis of faith. A crisis of faith will start with not doing one thing on the list of elements of faith. Then you will stop going to church and then you won’t believe in God anymore. Your crisis had started long before that.
2) Where Am I Using My Gift? The Bible has much to say about spiritual gifts. We regard it as a special endowment from God for His work. There are different list of gifts in the Bible--Romans 12, I Corinthians 12, Ephesians 4 and I Peter 4. When we look back at Jeph-thah, we believe that he was specially gifted by God. Based on the friends that he had and the actions that he did, where would you say he was using his gifts? He was using his gifts to influence and empower the enemy. Church you must understand how dangerous this is. Using your gift not for good means you are a traitor at least. God had Jeph-thah in that place for a reason. At this point he was not knowledgeable of it. Brothers and Sisters, where have you been working? How have you been using the talent and abilities that you have? Looking at the spiritual gift list, we have several things that are mentioned like gift of encouragement, giving, mercy, service, healing and more. There are many things that you have, that you have been misusing. Everything that you can do as a service to others can be regarded as a gift. Everything you have belongs to God and your task is to minister to others and not to yourselves.
3) How Do I know It Is God Calling? This is a powerful question. In our text, Jeph-thah was chased out. He was living the life of an infidel. He was living a wretched life. But I am reminding all of us that even when you are insane, God’s plan never changes for your life. Brothers and Sisters, God’s calling is sure. Listen, I want you to understand that when God puts something on you, not even the enemy can take it off. Not even your own sin can remove it. Not even your poverty or insecurity can shake it or take God’s plan off of your back.
Brothers and Sisters, a calling comes in different ways. Samuel heard his name being called. Moses saw the burning bush. Paul was struck down. Different people are called by God in different ways. There are some things that are common. In our text verse 4, the Elders went to get Jeph-that. Church when you are not thinking about God, God is thinking about you. Your lives are like a puzzle that slowly the pieces come together. Many of us feel wretched but understand your calling is on its way. Soon you will be asked to be a commander or a redeemer for somebody else. Your life is not about you or the other person, it is about God prompting on your heart. When you get a call, you never actually know it’s from God. As you walk this walk we can be sure that God is holding your hand. Just have the right mindset and the right idea and things will be fine. Some things that are common in God’s Call for you:
1) God Will Get Your Attention: This is not about us. God has a plan and a calling on our lives. Slow down so you can hear and see when the call comes.
2) The Call Will Be for Righteousness: God is not going to send you to kill somebody. If the call is about committing sin, then stop listening to that call.
3) The Call Will Align With Your Passion, Abilities & Gifts: I am a firm believer that after breathing then the next thing I am to do is to serve God. I have to choose God first.
4) There Needs to Be Some Kind of Confirmation: Confirmation can come in different ways.
5) God Will Give You The First Step: You just need the first step and not the entire journey. The first step is God’s footstep. Jeph-that got the invitation to command. He was to align himself with the people of God. He was to serve God and then serve them.
AMEN
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We have all had moments in our lives when we felt inadequate. I have had times when I felt unfulfilled and worthless, unprepared, scared, lonely and insufficient without a purpose. Feeling like I don’t belong and not possessing what the situation requires. We have a responsibility to work through these feelings and work through these experiences. Solomon had a situation where he had to hone his faith. When he was coming from a morning meditation, he said to God that he was as a child taking over his father King David’s position. Solomon felt inadequate and was feeling like some of us feel today. Solomon told God he needed help being king and asked God for an understanding heart to judge the people. Solomon worked thru his feelings. Brothers and Sisters we must accept where we are and seek the Lord’s help as you Hone your Faith.
Brothers and Sisters when we talk about Faith, we are really talking about this whole thing of a belief system. I want to expound on what is our faith today. Our faith sometimes drags us out of our comfort zone and we are placed in a situation where it is not unusual to sink or even drown. Sometimes we feel like God has placed us in impossible situations. Our faith must stand and we must call on the Lord. Keep our eyes off the problem and focus on God. We must let our soul rest in God because we belong to Him and we are His, the Creator of the universe. Brothers and Sisters we must Hone our Faith. As the challenges come, let us get to that position where we like Solomon, call on God for what we want. We rest in our faith and we recognize that we belong to God. And we call on His name.
The word Hone means to sharpen or make ready. By honing we are actually putting ourselves in a state of greater effectiveness or greater readiness. Hone your faith. Faith in Hebrews 11;1 “Faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen”. I want to shift your attention and broaden your horizons a little bit more. Your faith is your belief in God and the belief system that surrounds that. Brothers and Sisters, as our faith is a part of us, I have ten elements here that make up the belief system; the Faith that you have. The ten elements are things that we need to sharpen and make ready as we live for our Lord and Savior.
****FAITH:
1) Have knowledge of God the Creator.
2) The world is irredeemable.
3) God came to redeem man. Jesus died and was resurrected.
4) We anticipate Jesus’s return and the world will be different.
5) We accept Jesus as Lord and Savior.
6) We became part of a group called Christians, followers of Christ.
7) As Christians we join local believers in Jesus.
8) We are influenced by the Bible and Holy Spirit.
9) We live in accordance with His command with family, jobs, education.
10) We live to help and server other with abilities we got from the Holy Spirit.
Brothers and Sisters, if you have faith in God, these are the tenets that we need to pay attention to. For too long as Christians, we believed that being Christian is about saying I accept Jesus Christ then we wait to die. But your faith is much deeper than just that. It covers these ten elements or even more. Brothers and Sisters, I want to say to you that you can Hone your faith and understand that faith is now broader than how we normally look at it. It is about that system that I live in, the entirety of what I believe. We can hone our faith by answering the three following questions that are inferred from Judges 11;1-11. We should be able to work through these questions, to ponder these questions and to hone our faith as we find answers to these questions.
1) Do I Have a Crisis of Faith? In our text a man was thrown out of the community by his brothers because of his mother being a harlot. Jeph-thah went to live in another place and he was a mighty man of valour. Jeph-thah had worthless men band together with him and they went out raiding with him. Does this sound like somebody having a crisis of faith? Brothers and Sisters, when you have a crisis of faith, we always focus on the general things and we stop believing in God. I want to propose to you today that if you are lacking in any of the ten elements of faith, then you are not where you ought to be with God. Hence you have a crisis of your faith. I want you to understand that if God has called you to do something, whatever it is and you are not doing it, even if you still believe in God, then the elements of your belief system are withering and dying. You are having a crisis of faith.
The man Jeph-thah was a mighty man of valour which means this man had been endowed with gifts of God that he is to be using. You can say he ran from his people because he was chased out. But listen to where he was. He was in a place where worthless men found interest in him. He entertained them even though he was still an Israelite. He was having a crisis of faith. We need to evaluate our lives and what ministry God has called us to. Are you living by God’s commands in your community, family and school? If you are not doing this then you are having a crisis of faith. A crisis of faith will start with not doing one thing on the list of elements of faith. Then you will stop going to church and then you won’t believe in God anymore. Your crisis had started long before that.
2) Where Am I Using My Gift? The Bible has much to say about spiritual gifts. We regard it as a special endowment from God for His work. There are different list of gifts in the Bible--Romans 12, I Corinthians 12, Ephesians 4 and I Peter 4. When we look back at Jeph-thah, we believe that he was specially gifted by God. Based on the friends that he had and the actions that he did, where would you say he was using his gifts? He was using his gifts to influence and empower the enemy. Church you must understand how dangerous this is. Using your gift not for good means you are a traitor at least. God had Jeph-thah in that place for a reason. At this point he was not knowledgeable of it. Brothers and Sisters, where have you been working? How have you been using the talent and abilities that you have? Looking at the spiritual gift list, we have several things that are mentioned like gift of encouragement, giving, mercy, service, healing and more. There are many things that you have, that you have been misusing. Everything that you can do as a service to others can be regarded as a gift. Everything you have belongs to God and your task is to minister to others and not to yourselves.
3) How Do I know It Is God Calling? This is a powerful question. In our text, Jeph-thah was chased out. He was living the life of an infidel. He was living a wretched life. But I am reminding all of us that even when you are insane, God’s plan never changes for your life. Brothers and Sisters, God’s calling is sure. Listen, I want you to understand that when God puts something on you, not even the enemy can take it off. Not even your own sin can remove it. Not even your poverty or insecurity can shake it or take God’s plan off of your back.
Brothers and Sisters, a calling comes in different ways. Samuel heard his name being called. Moses saw the burning bush. Paul was struck down. Different people are called by God in different ways. There are some things that are common. In our text verse 4, the Elders went to get Jeph-that. Church when you are not thinking about God, God is thinking about you. Your lives are like a puzzle that slowly the pieces come together. Many of us feel wretched but understand your calling is on its way. Soon you will be asked to be a commander or a redeemer for somebody else. Your life is not about you or the other person, it is about God prompting on your heart. When you get a call, you never actually know it’s from God. As you walk this walk we can be sure that God is holding your hand. Just have the right mindset and the right idea and things will be fine. Some things that are common in God’s Call for you:
1) God Will Get Your Attention: This is not about us. God has a plan and a calling on our lives. Slow down so you can hear and see when the call comes.
2) The Call Will Be for Righteousness: God is not going to send you to kill somebody. If the call is about committing sin, then stop listening to that call.
3) The Call Will Align With Your Passion, Abilities & Gifts: I am a firm believer that after breathing then the next thing I am to do is to serve God. I have to choose God first.
4) There Needs to Be Some Kind of Confirmation: Confirmation can come in different ways.
5) God Will Give You The First Step: You just need the first step and not the entire journey. The first step is God’s footstep. Jeph-that got the invitation to command. He was to align himself with the people of God. He was to serve God and then serve them.
AMEN
