The Impartial God
Notes
Transcript
Baptisms
How many of you have multiple kids?
Ok - how many of YOU have a favorite kid?
Ok - how many of you have - AT TIMES - been persuaded by one of your children (in WHATEVER way) - so that you end up being PARTIAL with them?
In other words - does your kids behavior - at times - cause you to be PARTIAL?
If we’re honest - the answer’s YES.
Partiality is a part of who we are...
And the REASON - is because....
PRIDE is ALSO a part of who we are
And so Partiality can be a tricky thing for us - I think we’ll see that as we go...
When we look at our text today - We’re going to see - How God is NOT LIKE us...
We’ll actually start with 2 Chronicles to see a part of this story that we saw last week - and then make our way to 2 Kings...
20 Then the Spirit of God clothed Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, and he stood above the people, and said to them, “Thus says God, ‘Why do you break the commandments of the Lord, so that you cannot prosper? Because you have forsaken the Lord, he has forsaken you.’ ”
21 But they conspired against him, and by command of the king they stoned him with stones in the court of the house of the Lord.
22 Thus Joash the king did not remember the kindness that Jehoiada, Zechariah’s father, had shown him, but killed his son. And when he was dying, he said, “May the Lord see and avenge!”
If you remember from last week - we see it again - Joash ends up getting confronted by Zechariah - the son of Jehoiada...
And Zechariah - in CONFRONTING Joash and the people of Judah - he confronts their IDOLATRY!
First thing - is he shy about it?
NOT AT ALL...
In the public square - HE STAND ABOVE THEM ALL - and says -
Why do you break the commandments so that you cannot prosper??
Because you have FORSAKEN God - He has forsaken you.
No softening of the message - Just - WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS?
How does Joash respond?
He orders the killing of Zechariah - the SON of the man who RESCUED him from death!
And so THAT - this murder - goes on the RESUME of Joash!
WHICH - we’ll see - is right near the END of his resume.
19 Now the rest of the acts of Joash and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah?
20 His servants arose and made a conspiracy and struck down Joash in the house of Millo, on the way that goes down to Silla.
21 It was Jozacar the son of Shimeath and Jehozabad the son of Shomer, his servants, who struck him down, so that he died. And they buried him with his fathers in the city of David, and Amaziah his son reigned in his place.
Ok...
If we remember last week - we looked at the HEART of JOASH.
Joash started out as king at the age of 7 - and as he grew - Jehoiada - the chief priest at the time - GUIDED him.
And DURING that time - Joash pleased the Lord...
And the PEOPLE were BLESSED!
But as we saw last week - things didn’t END so well - for Joash.
When Jehoiada died - king Joash began to LISTEN to the princes of Judah.
And in doing so - he ushered IDOLATRY into Judah!
TODAY - we read of a conspiracy AGAINST Joash - to take him out!
And he’s killed by his own servants.
NOW - Let’s SUMMARIZE all that has happened to the people in this story - and FROM THERE - i think we’ll see a pretty obvious truth stand out to us...
OK - Jehoiada (the chief priest) - PLEASED the Lord in saving Joash as an infant.
He saves Joash - Keeps him alive - and makes him KING at the age of 7.
He then TRAINS and GUIDES Joash to PLEASE the Lord!
Joash himself - starts out well, pleasing the Lord
But then - Jehoiada - dies.
AND JOASH - then brings idol worship back to Judah
Zechariah - the SON of Jehoiada - comes and confronts Joash and the people of Judah…in their idolatry!
Joash - decides to KILL Zechariah!
Joash then gets taken out.
He came into power by way of a coup / and he dies by way of a coup
SUMMARY??
Jehoiada pleased the Lord by SAVING JOASH / His son was killed by Joash (the one he saved)
Joash pleased the Lord / ends up killing Jehoiada's son (Zechariah)
Zechariah pleased the Lord / THAT earned him a death due to his conviction
Joash pleased the Lord - but gets killed later in life
What TRUTH shines brightly here?
SLIDE:
GOD IS IMPARTIAL
What does that mean?
It means HE FAVORS NO ONE!
More specifically....
SLIDE: The Impartial God: Indebted to No One
The Impartial God
The Impartial God
If we think about the characters in this story - we MIGHT look at their actions - and THINK...
well clearly GOD will treat them a CERTAIN WAY
Let’s look at some of them...
Jehoiada:
He was a chief priest...
He obviously devoted his life to the LORD...
in TIME
in STUDY
in SERVICE
All of it… He partook in rescuing Joash and helping carry out the Promise of God in the Davidic line.
EVEN SO - he DIES - AND - - his SON is killed by the man he saved!
YIKES!!
But wait - DIDN’T Jehoiada devote his life to God?
And didn’t he LIVE that OUT????
OK - how about JOASH?
He becomes KING at 7 years old - Miraculously...
He is GUIDED by the chief priest
And he starts out PLEASING the LORD!
BUT - then he loses his mentor (Jehoiada - who dies)
And he begins to SEEK to please MAN instead!
IDOLATRY begins to Flourish...
And Joash used to PLEASE the Lord - He ends up being CONFRONTED BY HIM… by way of Zechariah.
the son of Jehoiada.
Joash KILLS him.
And ends up DYING HIMSELF - by way of a coup.
How about ZECHARIAH?
Here you have a man whose father was KILLED by king Joash...
And so Zechariah goes to him and confronts him in love.
Zechariah speaks TRUTH to Judah - and what does that EARN him?
His own death!
Moral of the story?
God is NOT - partial!
He is INDEBTED to NO ONE!!
Meaning - He doesn’t OWE ANYONE ANYTHING!!
Even the apostle PAUL!
THINK about the APOSTLES - and the DEVOTION they showed to Christ - in following HIM...
What did that get them?
James “put to death with the sword,” likely a reference to beheading.
the apostle Peter was crucified upside-down in Rome in fulfillment of Jesus’ prophecy (John 21:18).
The following are the most popular “traditions” concerning the deaths of the other apostles:
Matthew suffered martyrdom in Ethiopia, killed by a sword wound.
John was boiled in a huge basin of boiling oil BUT he survived..He died as an old man, the only apostle to die peacefully.
James, the brother of Jesus (not officially an apostle), was the leader of the church in Jerusalem. He was thrown from the southeast pinnacle of the temple (over a hundred feet down) when he refused to deny his faith in Christ. When they discovered that he survived the fall, his enemies beat James to death with a club.
Bartholomew, also known as Nathanael, was flayed to death by a whip for preaching the gospel.
Andrew was crucified on an x-shaped cross in Greece.
After being whipped severely by seven soldiers, they tied his body to the cross with cords to prolong his agony. His followers reported that when he was led toward the cross, Andrew saluted it in these words: “I have long desired and expected this happy hour. The cross has been consecrated by the body of Christ hanging on it.”
He continued to preach to his tormentors for two days until he died.
The apostle Thomas was stabbed with a spear in India during one of his missionary trips to establish the church there.
Matthias, the apostle chosen to replace the traitor Judas Iscariot, was stoned and then beheaded.
The apostle Paul was tortured and then beheaded by the evil Emperor Nero in Rome in A.D. 67.
THESE MEN pursued JESUS in their lives - and pursued PROCLAIMING His message...
AND DOING SO - earned them - horrible deaths!
NO ONE - puts God in their debt.
These - GOD FEARING men - SUFFERED greatly...
And YET - evil men - some of the WORST of the WORST - died peacefully in their beds....in their sleep.
Who CHOOSES? - - God does!
33 Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!
God’s ways are BEYOND our comprehension...
He does as He pleases...
18 So then he has mercy on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomever he wills.
An unbeliever - in REBELLION against God - ALL his life - may be given 100 years by God - to live on this earth - an EASY life...
While a Christian - a follower of Christ - may spend MOST of his life in prison - for preaching Jesus!!
WHO HAS IT BETTER?
Well - we might KNOW the thing to say to that - but truly BELIEVING it - may be a different story.
We know the quote...
SLIDE:
“He is no fool who gives away what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose.”
Word has it - Jim Elliot was NOT where this quote originated from.
Even so - I think we can OFTEN - as Christians - fall into thinking that the “bad” situations that come our way - ARE NOT from God because He just wouldn’t DO THAT.. ESPECIALLY to a believer!
And I think we forget - that THIS WORLD does not compare to what is coming for those who belong to Christ!
And in forgetting - Our pride begins to TELL US that we DESERVE a kingdom on this earth.
That we DESERVE a life WITHOUT drama...
That we DESERVE good-health
DESERVE a comfy life
DESERVE RESPECT from everyone
Where - We don’t care how you TREAT THAT person - but you better treat me THIS WAY...
NOW LET”S APPLY that concept - to Christ.
Of ALL people - who could have CLAIMED Partiality toward himself - it was Christ!
God - in the FLESH - AMONG men...
Listen - GETTING PUSHED AROUND by man.
Christ didn’t DEMAND partiality for himself!
Think of that!!!
God - the SON - comes down - in the flesh...
and instead of DEMANDING special treatment....
45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
the posture of Jesus - was a POSTURE of servanthood!
And think thru that.... If I’m in a constant STATE of servanthood...
Is it possible for anyone to put me in THEIR DEBT?
MEANING - I’m ALWAYS SERVING people...
NOW - HOW would someone PUT ME in THEIR debt...
They would DO SOMETHING for me = to where I now OWE them...
Well - If I’m ALWAYS in a posture of SERVING OTHERS - and one of those OTHERS does something for me....
Chances ARE - they’re SIMPLY just catching up to MY SERVICE to them...
OR - if the situation calls for me to really RETURN a favor, or do something like that...
I’D BE ALREADY living that out in my SERVICE to them!
SLIDE:
Impartiality never seeks its own. It always walks to the beat of the same standard, found outside of itself.
if we think of an IMPARTIAL judge...
What does that mean?
it means - that judge doesn’t CARE who is before him/her - whether it’s a celebrity or famous person, OR a family member - THAT JUDGE will render judgment - based on a standard OUTSIDE of himself - THE LAW.
AND he/she will OPERATE that way - for EVERYONE that comes before him/her.
**Imagine we have 2 people up here.
And let’s say that THIS person - is FAMOUS, HAS MONEY, HAS INFLUENCE in Society
And THIS OTHER person - is NOT ANY of those things.
If I view this FAMOUS person - as an opportunity to INCREASE myself - then I will be PARTIAL to that person.
I will give them the BEST THAT I HAVE…Why?
Because I’m SEEKING something from them.
What would I be seeking?
SLIDE:
their praise
their influence for myself
their FAME for myself
And this OTHER person - I won’t spend ANY time on...
I WON’T give them the best of what I have - because I don’t see them being able to ELEVATE ME - in any way.
This is PARTIALITY! - - And God HATES this!
1 My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory.
2 For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in,
3 and if you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and say, “You sit here in a good place,” while you say to the poor man, “You stand over there,” or, “Sit down at my feet,”
4 have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?
5 Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him?
6 But you have dishonored the poor man. Are not the rich the ones who oppress you, and the ones who drag you into court?
7 Are they not the ones who blaspheme the honorable name by which you were called?
8 If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well.
9 But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors.
We need to know that...
SLIDE:
Partiality consists of earthly desires making judgments against others
And so the call to US - goes out.
Don’t be partial.
Treat others how YOU would want to be treated.
When we see others - we should view them as SOULS...
Redeemed - or - Not redeemed
And so - a Characteristic of God is that He is NOT partial...
But what we DO see in our text - BECAUSE He is not partial - is that...
“Bad” things happen to believers....
and “Good” things happen to unbelievers…!
And i think - that when we come across this sort of thing in Scripture - we need to REST - in a DEEPER truth than that.
And so while the God we serve is an IMPARTIAL God - He ALSO...
SLIDE: The Impartial God: Promises Good to His Own
The Impartial God
The Impartial God
Now - we READ this - and maybe we go RIGHT BACK to our text today and we say - TIME OUT!!!!
How is it GOOD for Zechariah to get STONED - for standing up for truth / God??
See - I think we start to get off track when we DEFINE LIFE - using our OWN - definitions - and not using God’s definitions
And WE ALL struggle with this.
We constantly have to WAR against DEFINING LIFE - using our OWN standards!!
At TIMES - we’ll DEFINE...
“Good” as - - COMFORT
“Good” as - - Material riches
“Good” as - - LEISURE
“Good” as - - EASY
“Good” as - - Physical Life
And we’ll DEFINE...
“Bad” as - - Suffering
“Bad” as - - Being broke
“Bad” as - - the Mountain to climb
“Bad” as - - That Scary thing to do
“Bad” as - - the Grave
But LISTEN - these are simply OUR DEFINITIONS - OUR standards!
And so - Gospel suffering is BAD? (suffering that comes directly because of faith)
21 When they had preached the gospel to that city and had made many disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch,
22 strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.
THROUGH MANY tribulations we must enter the Kingdom…!
Then these MUST be GOOD!
How about PLAIN OLD SUFFERING? - Not even Gospel Suffering ?
1 As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth.
2 And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”
3 Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.
We HAVE to stop defining life - using OUR standards!
This blindness of this man - was GOOD - Why?
Because God USED it to GLORIFY God!!
How about MONEY...
We want to LOVE money?
24 “But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.
25 For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”
9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.
When we DEFINE life by using our standards...
We will WAR AGAINST God when things - go “poorly”… SEEMINGLY poorly.
Zechariah - in our text today - STOOD up for God - SPOKE for God...
And he was STONED because of it!
We CANNOT filter that through OUR STANDARDS...
OUR standards disagree with THIS being GOOD...
But scripture tells us… God tells us...
21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
23 I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.
And based on this....
8 And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire.
9 And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire.
THIS TRUTH MEANS...
A life of FAITH - yet with physical BLINDNESS - is BETTER than a life lived with PERFECT sight.
A life of FAITH - yet in a wheelchair - is BETTER than a life lived in walking through life all your days
AGAIN - the world’s standards would say - WHAT? - NO!!
Don’t EVEN THINK about plucking out my eye!!
WHY? - because to the world - THIS world - THIS LIFE - is all there is!!
To the world - the hope REALLY is - that THIS LIFE - is the BEST LIFE.
But the God we serve - He KNOWS better!
He KNOWS what awaits those who have SURRENDERED in faith to Christ!
18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.
And understand who is saying these words!
This isn’t a guy who DIDN’T SUFFER for Christ!
The apostle Paul has a LAUNDRY list of sufferings in scripture!
23 Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death.
24 Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one.
25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea;
26 on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers;
27 in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure.
28 And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches.
And THIS guy says...
The LEVEL of PAIN I felt - the LEVEL of FEAR that came - the LEVEL of UNKNOWN that was present in me
NONE of THAT - can compare to the GREATNESS of the GLORY and JOY that is coming in the end!!
And BECAUSE GOD KNOWS THAT...
He KNOWS that to...
MAKE ME love more like Him...
MAKE Me SPEAK more like Him...
MAKE ME WALK more like Him...
He KNOWS - that He can use THIS WORLD - to MOLD ME...
He can WIELD pain- and suffering - to SHAPE ME
He can BRING ABOUT hardship and TROUBLES - to change me!
SUMMARY:
The Impartial God
Indebted to No One
Promises Good to His Own
The same illness that throws the LOST/Unbeliever into despair - can be used by God to bring Himself glory as His child walks THROUGH that illness praising God because God is more valuable than physical life itself!
The same loss that crumbles the unbeliever’s hope and joy, can be used by God to catapult the believer into a deep gratefulness for the eternal life He brings!
To close - Think thru the apostle Paul writing to the Philippians - from prison.
So he was UNJUSTLY imprisoned...
To the world - to an unbeliever - the thought probably would have been - OK - DON’T DO WHAT PAUL DID!
Just KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT!!
But How did God use that imprisonment?
12 I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel,
13 so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ.
14 And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.
To the BELIEVER - this imprisonment made them think - OK - LET’S GO - Let’s go SPEAK THE SAME MESSAGE in THAT CITY...
In EVERY CITY!!
They were emboldened!
And if BEING EMBOLDENED - FOR Christ - is GOOD… (yes?)
Then that imprisonment - was GOOD!
And THANK GOD that He wasn’t - PARTIAL toward Paul - to guard and protect Paul to keep him comfortable OUTSIDE of prison.
One of the VERY REASONS we’re sitting here today - is because God WAS NOT partial toward Paul.
God is INDEBTED to NO ONE...
AND YET - He promises Good to His own!
AMEN
Let’s pray