Skillfully Sidestepping God
Skillfully Sidestepping God
Skillfully Sidestepping God…
Creating Substitutions for What God Really Wants
By Pastor Dan Kennedy
©2009
Jesus once told a story illustrating that God, as an honorable Heavenly Father, wants to give good gifts, not bad gifts, to His Children.
Matthew 7
7 “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 9 Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? 11 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!
This works both ways.
If God asks us for bread, will we give Him a stone?
If He asks for a fish, will we give Him a serpent?
I’m afraid that most of the time we find a way to sidestep giving God what He really wants, because what He really wants has to do with what is the foundation of our will, our desires and our motivation.
God is primarily concerned about one thing in our life. He is concerned about our heart. From the heart can come forth all sorts of evil things…but it is from a redeemed heart that we evidence our true love for God. We show who we are, from our heart.
Heart Disease
According to the National Vital Statistics Report, Vol. 54, No. 19, June 28, 2006, the leading cause of death in the United States is heart disease, with cancer being the second most predominant cause. Together, in 2004 they accounted for more than 1.2 million deaths, or 50% of all deaths in the states.
When it comes to our relationship with God, the affect of spiritual “heart disease” is unparalleled. It accounts for 100% of spiritual death!
Unfortunately, just as we have learned to sidestep what we need to do to keep a healthy physical heart, we have even more skillfully learned how to sidestep a healthy spiritual heart by creating clever substitutions with which we desperately want God to be happy!
The Foundation of our Spirit – Our Heart
Proverbs 4:23
“Keep your heart with all vigilance,
for from it flow
the
springs of life.”
“Keep” (nā∙ṣǎr):
Preserve, keep, maintain, protect; cause to be safe from danger - implying a relationship with the protector (Ps 40:12)
Spared, kept safe, i.e., pertaining to being free from danger, as an extension of keeping a valuable hidden (Isa 49:6; Eze 6:12)
“Heart”
The Scripture does not normally speak of our heart as simply that organ that pumps blood through our veins, but in parallel (to the absolute necessity of the physical counterpart) as something centrally vital to our human spirit.
Heart (lēḇ): the physical heart, but also in reference to the following:
The heart, mind, soul, spirit, self, i.e., the source of life of the inner person in various aspects, with a focus on feelings, thoughts, volition, and other areas of the inner life (Isa 57:15; Ecc 2:1)
•To lose courage, be in a state of hopelessness, lacking confidence in a future situation (Jer 4:9)
•To have internal corruption (Ecc 7:7)
•To be stubborn-hearted (Isa 46:12)
•To think or have a thought (Ge 17:17)
•To choose between several options (1Ki 12:33)
•To restore my purity (Ps 51:12)
•To be responsive to God (Eze 11:19; 36:26)
•To be in a joyful, positive and glad attitude (1Ki 21:7; Jdg 19:22)
•To be in a state of anxiety and distress (Ge 42:28)
•To be unresponsive, to have a “hardened heart”, to be morally stubborn regarding a change of action or attitude (Ex 9:7)
•To have permanent memory (“tablet of the heart”), keeping something in your memory, remembering a prior relationship as in a covenant – as a figurative extension of a stone writing tablet (Pr 3:3; 7:3; Jer 17:1+)
•Insolence, stubbornness, (“veil on heart”), the figurative extension of blindness as a matter of understanding (La 3:65+)
•To have anguish, (“groaning of the heart”), in a state of mental sorrow and affliction (Ps 38:9)
•To carry an emotional burden, (“staggering of heart”), the experience of a distressing situation (1Sa 25:31+)
•To be proud, haughty (Pr 21:4+)
“Vigilance” (miš∙mār):
Guarding, custody, imprisonment, confinement, i.e., the state of imprisoning or confining a prisoner, often with a focus on the place one is in the state of confinement (Ge 40:3, 4, 7; 41:10; 42:17; Lev 24:12; Nu 15:34; Ne 12:25; Job 7:12; Pr 4:23; Eze 38:7)
Guard a person or group of persons who watch over, for confinement or protection (1Ch 26:16; Ne 4:3,16; Jer 51:12+)
Post, station, i.e., a place where a guard is assigned to watch (Ne 7:3+)
Prison, house of confinement, i.e., a structure where prisoners are kept (Ge 42:19+)
Flow (tô∙ṣā∙˒ôṯ):
Starting point, source, wellspring, i.e., the source of an event or activity from the figurative extension of the beginning limit of a space (Pr 4:23)
Springs of Life (ḥǎy):
Life, i.e., the state of animate life, which of course is the contrast of death (Ge 2:7; 27:46; Job 7:7)
Nourishment, food (Pr 27:27)
Life, i.e., to have a prosperous, bountiful, blessed favorable circumstance in life, contrasted with a cursed unfavorable life (Dt 30:6; Pr 15:24; 16:15)
Our heart is the source or wellspring of our life. If we do not keep it, we will destroy ourselves, and affect our eternal reward. It seems that when mankind fell into depravity, we became bound and determined to go our own way against God, but God still holds our hearts accountable to Him. There are several ways through which we try to get around our accountability to God when it comes to our heart.
We can do this through several means and more:
♦Traditions
♦Temptations
♦Talents
♦Treasures
♦Time
♦Tears
In the Scripture Reading today, we saw the first example of skillfully sidestepping God in the example of “spiritual traditions”.
1. Skillfully Sidestepping God through “Spiritual” Traditions
Scripture Reading: Mark 7:1-23
Mark 7
7 Now when the Pharisees gathered to him, with some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem, 2 they saw that some of his disciples ate with hands that were defiled, that is, unwashed. 3 (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands, holding to the tradition of the elders, 4 and when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other traditions that they observe, such as the washing of cups and pots and copper vessels and dining couches.) 5 And the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?” 6 And he said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written,
“ ‘ This people honors me with their lips,
but their heart is far from me;
7 in vain do they worship me,
teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’
8 You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.”
9 And he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition! 10 For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.’ 11 But you say, ‘If a man tells his father or his mother, Whatever you would have gained from me is Corban’ (that is, given to God)— 12 then you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or mother, 13 thus making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And many such things you do.”
What Defiles a Person
14 And he called the people to him again and said to them, “Hear me, all of you, and understand: 15 There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.” 17 And when he had entered the house and left the people, his disciples asked him about the parable. 18 And he said to them, “Then are you also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, 19 since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.) 20 And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. 21 For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”
Are there religious traditions that we keep, which we feel might be good enough to replace the necessity of honoring God with all of our heart?
2. Skillfully Sidestepping God through our exercise of “Special” Talents
Do we do the things that we are naturally gifted to do (all the while holding on to the deceitful things we coddle in our hearts), expecting God to be satisfied with our outward display of service for Him?
Romans 12
3 For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.
3. Skillfully Sidestepping God because of our deceitful heart’s “Seductive” Temptations
All of us should be aware of the deceitfulness of our human heart. We need to vigilantly guard ourselves from this deceitful, depraved part of us; that desperate part of us so willing to be let free and destroy us – and anything else good in our lives. Remember the verses we just read in Mark 7?
Mark 7
20 And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. 21 For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”
We cannot hold on to the hidden things we enjoy in our flesh and expect God to bless us. He holds no favorites. Time will reveal all things. We need to repent from that which will destroy us spiritually, or suffer the consequences.
Luke 12
2 Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known.
4. Skillfully Sidestepping God because we have “Splendid” Treasures
Where do the treasures in our life fit in? Do we consider that giving from our treasure is an act of worship, or is giving from our treasure merely an act of earning favor with God?
The Widow’s Mite
Remember the setting when Jesus told of the widow’s mite?
Mark 12
41 And he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. 42 And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. 43 And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. 44 For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”
Bigger Barns
Remember the man who wanted to tear down his barns only to build greater ones to house his secure future, and then learning that God was going to require an accounting of his life that very night?
Luke 12:13-21
13 Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” 14 But he said to him, “Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?” 15 And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” 16 And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, 17 and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ 18 And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.’ 20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ 21 So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”
For where our treasure is, there will our heart be also. Matt. 6:21
Treasure hunting, in this world, for our continued security is an elusive dream, never to be realized
Will the stock market always stay up? Will our property investments always rise? Is our home secure from theft or fire? Will not rust one day, consume our fine cars? Will we always have fossil fuels to heat our homes and power our cars? Will the banks always be safe? Will the icecaps never melt? Is our temporal life guaranteed forever? Will not we, one day, stand before The Judge of all Time?
How much treasure will you and I need for our continued security here on the earth?
No one can lay up enough treasure for themselves to assure themselves of certain and continuing security! Only those who have treasure with God can have such certainty.
5. Skillfully Sidestepping God through noteworthy “Service” and Time
Time can be a close associate of “treasure”. We can be so involved in “good” things that we might feel we deserve a bit more accommodation when it comes to our relationship with God. Unfortunately, time inordinately spent in any cause, can eventually become even an enemy to the “cause” itself, because it destroys our love and zeal for what we are doing – and sometimes it is destructive to the relationship with the very One whom we are serving. We can give our lives for all manner of good causes, but it does not mean that such giving of our time, sacrificial though it be, will positively affect our spiritual relationship with God. Giving our time to God should be in companionship with giving our Heart to God…and it can be kept in balance with love and wisdom from God. This affects time in all areas of our life:
•My personal relationship with God
•The priority that God has given me for my family
•Keeping honorable responsibilities and commitments
•Honorably caring for those who look to me for help
•Seeking God’s wisdom in what to do and what not to do
•Empowerment, by God’s Holy Spirit, for the tasks God has given me to do, so that what I do will have true meaning and not just be “busy work” – an endless waving of my arms, running of my feet, and beating of the air with the “good works” of my hands! (If my heart is not right with God, I will not be empowered by God.)
•Striving for a Godly balance in all things – as directed daily by God through His Spirit. “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the Children of God!”
•Seeking forgiveness when I am wrong, and giving forgiveness when I am wronged
When God’s Work is accomplished through His Power, we have an active Body of Christ, a growing Church, enlivened and maturing, which will truly build up God’s Kingdom…a Church that can be blessed by God and a Church that can survive the fiery darts of the enemy.
I believe we could change 1 Corinthians 13:1-3, to echo those same sentiments which we are speaking of regarding the heart.
1 Corinthians 13
If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love (an honorable heart to God), I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love (an honorable heart to God), I am nothing. 3 If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love (an honorable heart to God), I gain nothing.
The final area mentioned today will be that of Tears…tears that can be, shall we say, “crocodile”, or pseudo-remorseful?
6. Skillfully Sidestepping God through “Superficial” Tears
Tears can be representative of “punishing ourselves” or an act of “penitence” we give to ourselves to atone for our sin, but penitence will never replace the only sacrifice for our sin – the precious Blood of Christ. Tears of remorse also do not necessarily mean that we are experiencing true repentance. Remember Esau’s tears (Heb. 12:15-17)? They showed his sorrow (because he did not benefit from his mistake of selling his birthright), but they evidenced no repentance before God. It is like starting to cry when we are caught doing something wrong. We should have really begun crying before we got caught, if we had sincerely meant it!
The book of James says we should cry in true repentance over our sin.
James 4
6 But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” 7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.
Conclusion
Is there anything in our hearts that should be released and given to the hand of God?
Traditions, Temptations, Talents, Treasures, Time, or Tears
Today there may be some very tough decisions that may need to be made. If you keep holding on to these things that have captured your heart and that are destroying you spiritually in thinking that because you have these thing that somehow God likes you better, on one hand, or God does not see the bad things, on the other hand -- you will eventually and sadly suffer the cost. If you give them up today, right now and in due time, you will be so thankful you made that decision!
Satan’s agenda is to dupe anyone he can into the deception of thinking that spirituality can be obtained through certain forms of religiosity. Satan also dupes us into thinking that God could care less if we keep a little sin in our lives while we are serving God. Both deceptions are false.
May God give us the wisdom to serve Him faithfully, honorably and righteously with all our hearts. Is God bringing something to your mind right now that may have allowed you in the past to think that you were Skillfully Sidestepping God? Instead, we must be led, filled and empowered by His Spirit to accomplish His work in His Kingdom? Let’s not deceive ourselves by thinking we can sidestep God.