ONE MORE TIME
Introduction:
We often hear someone say just
one more time. Little kids for a ride at the park --"Please mommy, just one more
time?" When we were children, sometimes we probably got that one extra ride,
piece of candy, extra five minutes before going to bed or some other harmless
reward for our persistent pleas. When we get older, however, we have to take
care of ourselves and more self-discipline is needed. We often need to deprive
ourselves of an extra five minutes sleep, an extra piece of pie, a new car,
boat, computer or just a few more minutes of some type of recreation. Sometimes
we exercise good discipline and sometimes we don't. In the Bible Hezekiah, II
Kings chapter 20, prayed for more time and got 15 years, Gideon seemed to want
just one more sign -- Judges chapter 6. When people decide to stop some bad
habit, they often indulge themselves just one more time and typical of any
addiction they never stop. When someone decides to make a change in their life,
they linger just a little longer in the old ways. People who know they need to
be baptized, often want to wait to have just one more last spree of sin. When
someone makes up their mind to be more diligent in attendance, they want to wait
until the family has made their yearly visit or for something else that they
know can keep them away from services. This could go on and on.
Now is the day of salvation --
Paul quotes from Isaiah 49 in his second letter to the Corinthians. Isaiah 49 prophecies about the coming redeemer, the holy one of Israel, being a light to the Gentiles, calling people out of darkness. In II Corinthians 6:1-2 Paul says:
We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For He says:
"In an acceptable time I have heard you,
And in the day of salvation I have helped you."
Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.
Plea to accept the message of salvation
Looking back to chapter 5 in II Cor. Paul concludes the chapter telling his mission as an ambassador, urging them to be reconciled to God. They had been blessed to hear the Gospel. They had received the grace of God, 6:1, and were urged not to receive it in vain.
I believe stress should be on:
necessity of reconciliation,
a blessing to hear the gospel,
God's grace that there is the good news of Salvation.
Ephesians 2:1-6
And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, 2 in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, 3 among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others. 4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus
In the present tense, this is what happens when we are baptized.
Paul stresses the trials and tribulations of the ministers to preach the Gospel
The story is told of one preacher and his wife. As told by his mother.
Shortly after starting his first work as a minister for a congregation, he and his wife came to visit us one Saturday. I sensed that she was unhappy; not wishing to be a meddlesome mother-in-law, I pretended not to notice. But as they departed, I heard her say, "All right, we will go by the church and you can practice baptizing me just one more time."
Life as a Christian is better that any in the past. We do picture
baptizing people, in our minds we lower them into the water and lift them out.
We want them to obey the gospel.
The list: II Corinthians 6:4-10 --Stress the appropriate
But in all things we commend ourselves as ministers of God: in much patience, in tribulations, in needs, in distresses, 5 in stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in sleeplessness, in fastings; 6 by purity, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Spirit, by sincere love, 7 by the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armor of righteousness on the right hand and on the left, 8 by honor and dishonor, by evil report and good report; as deceivers, and yet true; 9 as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold we live; as chastened, and yet not killed; 10 as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.
Note verse 3 -- ". . . That our ministry be not blamed"
Paul had done what he could to preach the gospel to the Corinthians. He had lasted all the hardships, trials, persecutions, sadness, poverty, physical and verbal attacks. Why?
Because it was worth it for the Corinthians.
THE CORINTHIAN PROBLEMS WERE NOT THE FAULT OF THE PREACHER
The problem holding back the Corinthians
They were restricted by their own affections. II Cor. 6:12, Paul says, "You are not restricted by us, but you are restricted by your own affections."
It wasn't the preacher's fault of not preaching long or short enough, not preaching just right, not preaching on the right topic, or preaching too much. It was their problem of what they liked. How many excuses today, involving the preaching, do we give for not accepting the Gospel or for not making changes in our lives or not being as devoted as we should? In Reality we should be looking closely at those things which we just don't want to give up.
At a church meeting a very wealthy man rose to tell the rest of those present about his Christian faith. "I'm a millionaire," he said, "and I attribute it all to the rich blessings of God in my life. I remember that turning point in my faith. I had just earned my first dollar and I went to a church meeting that night. The speaker was a missionary who told about his work. I knew that I only had a dollar bill and had to either give it all to God's work or nothing at all. So at that moment I decided to give my whole dollar to God. I believe that God blessed that decision, and that is why I am a rich man today."
He finished and there was an awed silence at his testimony as he moved toward his seat. As he sat down a little old lady sitting in the same pew leaned over and said to him: "I dare you to do it again."
--James S. Hewett, Illustrations Unlimited
Don't be unequally yoked is Paul's admonition. They were the temple of God, not the temple at Jerusalem but in a building much better. They were not in some earthly building, but they themselves were the temple, a habitation of God.
This is the nature of the God's temple now. In Revelation 21:22 John says:
But I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God
Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.
We won't be ready to accept what God has for us, we will not be ready to pass from this life into the next until we are prepared to live in a better place. That's who we are.
Why change now? Why is now important? Because you only have the rest of your life and once you make the commitment, you will know that it's not long enough. Now is important because, if we haven't made necessary changes, we are restrained and cannot live and act as we should be living and acting as Christians.
The solution --
- Verse 17 -- come out from among them and be separate says the Lord.
Separation does not mean a slow withdrawal, a lingering cherished desire, a fond remembrance, a clinging to the things we should give up .........
- 7:1 A cleansing is necessary. We need a bath.
II Cor. 7:1 Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
- In this we have stressed the emphasis Paul placed on preaching to the Corinthians.
Why did he do this?
- Some were not ready to listen, why not wait?
- Some were still clinging to sin, why not wait?
- Some still had ties to the world, why bother, why not wait?
- Some were emotionally tied to their own wants and agenda for life, why not wait?
So, why not wait? Why was Paul unwilling to wait, when the Corinthians were determined to wait to make changes. Maybe preachers ought to go about checking on everybody. Are you ready to make a change, if so I'll preach on it. Ridiculous?
Let humbly suggest that Paul did not wait because of the principle that he has clearly laid out, "Now is the day of salvation."
No man looking back --
This illustration by Jesus is used concerning who will follow him.
Luke 9:57-62 Now it happened as they journeyed on the road, that someone said to Him, "Lord, I will follow You wherever You go." 58 And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head." 59 Then He said to another, "Follow Me." But he said, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father." 60 Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God." 61 And another also said, "Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house." 62 But Jesus said to him, "No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."
Bury my dead father --
A change in our life's situation -- When my father dies and I bury him then I will serve. When my children are grown. When the situation at work changes. When I get some of my bills paid -- When, when ... When!
Did any body change when there children were grown, very few. Did the situation at work get better? Did you serve God better then? Our kids grow up, our work gets better. Then we talk about how important family is. We talk about how we need to give our all to our employers because our life is good. Did our children learn to work for the Lord? Do our coworkers know that serving God is first in our lives. Consider carefully - now is the time to serve God. There will always be something there to hinder us. If its not a cold, it will be a broken car or a house repair or a death, or someone who hasn't died, or a new car, or grandchildren or some other situation in life. Calamities of life don't go into halt mode, so we can serve God. It's just the opposite, right? Yes it is. Whew, do I need this.
If we are willing to accept excuses, There will always be something to keep us from serving God.
Let me say good by to my. . . --
This amounts to the one more time -- We just can't walk away from our past, can we? Yet we must - to be fit for the kingdom. The privilege of discipleship is always worth the cost.
Invitation