Paving a Pathway for His Presence

Introduction

Jack and Jim story

I want to begin with a little illustration I heard recently… There was once 2 sons who we will call Jack and Jim and they had very different relationships with their father. Jack was the type of son who would wake up and start his day by having breakfast with his Dad and talking about what he had planned that day. He would then go off to work and call his Dad at lunch to check in and see how he was going. He finished his day by sitting and talking about deep things with his father and hearing his wisdom on certain issues. Before he went to bed, they prayed together to finish their day.

Jim on the other hand was the type of son who slept in and often skipped breakfast with his Dad. He didn’t really make conversation with him and even when his father tried to communicate with him, he would often mutter or say very little at all. He would go to his room for most of the day and hardly ever make the effort to be with his father.

Now, which of these two men was more of a son to their Dad? The answer is neither. They were both sons by birth and their Father loved them both. However, which of these two men profited more out of their relationship with their Father? The first son Jack. Why? Because he deliberately chose to spend time and put things in place that were going to benefit his relationship with His Dad.

We’ve been covering what it looks like to ‘Prepare The Way’ for the Lord as we enter into this new year. A couple of weeks ago, I spoke about preparing the soils of our hearts before the Lord and the importance of keeping our hearts open and soft before Him in all that we do. I purposely did this first because It can be very easy as a follower of Jesus to think that we just need to ‘DO’ more things. And last week, Rich mentioned that we are entering into February where we as a church are beginning a month of fasting in some way. I want to make it clear that it isn’t about just ‘doing’ something on your Christian ‘to-do-list’ and ticking it off for the year. As soon as you start making Christianity about ‘works’ then you fall into a grave trap of legalism. HOWEVER, you cannot say that your relationship with Jesus doesn’t need to produce works because THEN you also fall into a grave trap of laziness. So this morning we are going to talk about what it looks like to Pave a Pathway through your life for God’s presence to be noticed… But I want you to be aware of these two traps of thought as we speak okay? Legalism on the one hand may pop into your heart while I speak and say something like this… “Well, you’re not doing what he’s talking about so you can’t possibly be a Christian.” Beware of that lie! But on the other hand, Laziness may pop into your heart and sound something like this… “That sounds lovely Dan, but I have my own relationship with God and I don’t need to do anything else that you are saying.” Beware of that lie too. I hope that makes sense… It can be very difficult to talk about ‘doing’ certain things in Christian circles because often people have one of these two responses.

You know, If you are a Christian, and you have received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour, then you are a Child of God and you are saved by Grace alone through Faith alone. However, the way that you pave out your relationship with God can determine just how wonderful and fruitful it is. It doesn’t make you any more or less a child of God, but it certainly has a great impact on your day to day life with you Heavenly Father.

So as we talk about paving pathways for God’s presence in your life, I just want you to be aware of Legalism and laziness okay? Guard your heart against these things as we learn together as a family this morning.

Let’s just pray and guard our hearts in Him aye?

PRAY

1. Paving a Pathway for the Lord

Paving a Pathway for His Presence. Now what do I mean by that?

When we talk about preparing the way for God and Paving a pathway for His Spirit in your life, there is one particular person that pops to mind straight away and His name is John the Baptist. John’s whole ministry and the whole purpose of His life was to prepare the way for Jesus through a baptism of repentance. We read in Mark 1:2-3

Mark 1:2–3 NIV

as it is written in Isaiah the prophet: “I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way” — “a voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.’ ” 

Now John had a very important role to play in preparing for Jesus’ ministry because he was showing people that they had to turn away from their way of living and turn toward Jesus who was coming. And because Jesus was coming, they had to soften their hearts so that they would be ready to receive Him as the Messiah. (Hence why I talked about our hearts last time). John goes on to say to the crowds in Mark 1:7-8

Mark 1:7–8 NIV

And this was his message: “After me comes the one more powerful than I, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

So John is essentially telling people to ‘GET READY’ because God was about to do a mighty work in their midst and He didn’t want people to miss it! The whole point of His life was to point people away from himself and toward Jesus when He came.

Two very interesting things I want to point out to all of us here at this point… The first is John prepared the way for the Lord in the wilderness. Now, why is that so important? Well in the book of Exodus, we read about how the Israelites wandered around in the wilderness for 40 years before they entered the promised land. And here we see that John the Baptist is preparing the way for Jesus in the wilderness because he is pointing people to the whole picture of the promised land - JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF. And if people enter into a relationship with Him, they too can know true freedom and the whole purpose of the Promised land. He is our Promised Land and John was in the wilderness declaring just that.

The second thing I want to highlight is the part where it says “Make straight paths for Him.” And this is really where I want us to unpack what ‘Paving a pathway for the Lord’ looks like as a picture. What does that mean? How do we make a straight path for God in our life? Well, in ancient days, pathways or what we would call roads were sometimes not very well kept… (However, sometimes when I drive to Palmerston North, I don’t really think that much has changed…) Anyway, so it would not be uncommon for a path to be bumpy and crooked. However, what used to happen was whenever royalty came into town, or some form of King or Queen was coming to visit, they used to go out and make sure that the path was straight and level for when they arrived. They would do this out of respect for the royalty, but also because they didn’t want to be seen as people who didn’t care about their town. So when it talks about making a straight path for the Lord, I think that this is a fitting picture for us all.

Each one of us, in our own lives, has the most royal of Kings who is ready to come into your life and be with you every single day… Now I have a question for you… What is the pathway of your life like for him? What are the things that are maybe a bit bumpy that you know are bumpy, but you haven’t done anything about it? Or what is the area that is crooked and out of shape that you just can’t be bothered mending or allowing God to re-shape? Jesus Christ is our King and our Royalty, and because He is ready to meet with us every single day, there are certain things that we can implement in order to Pave a straight path for Him to move in our lives.

2. How do we Pave a Pathway?

My Dream Last week

I had a dream just this last week that was very simple and not very inspiring, but it was from the Spirit of God and I believe it was for me and also for all of us who are willing to receive it. (You know when the Lord gives you some dreams that stick with you and then some random crazy dreams that just don’t? Well this one for some reason did). In my dream, I was in a car driving to lead people on a tramp up a mountain. Then all of a sudden, halfway there in the car, I realised that I had forgotten my tramping bag. That was the end of my dream. I know, inspiring aye?

But the Lord spoke to me when I asked Him about what this meant… He said son, in the journey of faith, there are certain things that you must remember to take with you on that journey in order to sustain you for what is to come.

And I think that so many of us want to journey this walk of life with the Lord, but we are unwilling to take our ‘faith pack’ so to speak. Or we aren’t neccesarily unwilling to take it, but we have just forgotten it all together. What is in that faith pack? What are the things that actually the Lord uses to sustain us through this walk of life and in our relationship with Him? What are the things we need to remember that maybe we have forgotten?

One thing that I truly believe is in that faith pack which helps us pave a pathway for God’s voice in our lives is…

Fasting

I want to spend the next 10 minutes or so talking about this topic and clarifying a few things because we are entering into February very soon and together, we would love you to press into the Lord in some way with Fasting. In future weeks, I want to unpack other things that are in that ‘faith pack’ also, but seeing as February is just around the corner, I thought I would unpack this one first.

But before you walk out the door or get too excited that there is some guy at church about to tell you how not eating food is amazing when it comes to faith, Let me just clarify a few things…

Firstly, if you have some sort of medical reason why you shouldn’t fast or it is going to put your health in danger, then that is totally okay and we are not telling you that you should ignore that medical advice and press into the Lord. We are not saying that at all! You may want to give up something that has become a bit of an ‘Appetite’ in your life more than it should be. Psalm 24:3-4

Psalm 24:3–4 NIV

Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not trust in an idol or swear by a false god.

Now that line ‘who does not trust in an idol’ is a very interesting phrase because in the original text, the words for ‘does not trust’ means ‘to nurse an appetite’. So what this psalm is saying is… Who can stand in the Holy place of the Lord? The one who is not nursing an appetite for an idol. And maybe, this February as we enter into fasting, those of you who have some sort of reason why you should be eating need to look at something else in your life that you have been nursing an appetite for that is not the Lord Himself. So I just wanted to clarify that before we talk about it because it’s important that you stay healthy and eat if you have some sort of reason why you should be.

1. Lies about Fasting

When it comes to paving a pathway for the Lord through fasting, our perspective really does matter. So I want to share a couple of quick lies that we often believe when it comes to this area that we need to dismiss so we can have a pure and healthy view of what fasting really is.

A) Jesus set me free so I don’t have to fast.

In some Christian circles, you hear these types of statements when it comes to freedom. Essentially what they are meaning is “Jesus has set me free so I am not bound by any rituals.” Two things about that statement… The first is what Paul says about this in his letter to the Romans… He says… Romans 6:14-18

Romans 6:14–18 NIV

For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace. What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? By no means! Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you have come to obey from your heart the pattern of teaching that has now claimed your allegiance. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.

So Paul talks about Christian freedom being like a slave of Righteousness. So it isn’t just saying… “YES! I’m free from sin! Now I can live however I think is right!” NO. We spoke last time about how the heart can be very deceitful! Christian freedom is saying… “YES! I’m free from sin! But now I am saved to live a righteous life through Christ Jesus and by His power.” And this requires a certain way of doing things. You see, true freedom in Christ has boundaries.

Society today will tell you that true freedom has no boundaries and you can do whatever you want whenever you want as long as it doesn’t hurt anyone else. But that is not what Christian freedom is. Christian freedom is being a slave to righteousness in Christ Jesus. Christian freedom is living within the boundaries of God’s way so we can flourish how we were always supposed to.

Fish out of water analogy

You know there’s been a couple of times when I’ve been a part of a secret Santa game in the workplace and I’ve had this little trick… Usually when you do a secret Santa at work they only give you a small amount of money like $10 to go and buy for someone right? So a few times over the years I’ve done something a bit sneaky… I’ve gone out and bought a $5 glass jar and a $5 fresh water fish from the pet store and wrapped that up to give to someone. You can imagine the surprise someone gets when they open up their gift to find a fish in a jar right?! Anyway, one time I did this and I didn’t realise that I had bought a fish that needed to be in a certain amount of oxygenated water or something… Long story short after the secret Santa, apparently it didn’t last too long at the persons house for whatever reason. But that fish needed a certain amount of oxygen in the water to live! If I was to take a fish out of water completely and put it in front of you, is that fish free? I guess so! But is it going to live and last? NO! Because it needs water to live!

In the same way, we are free but we are free to live a certain way in Christ through His power that will help us flourish.

Fasting is one of those ways that God uses in our lives to reveal precious parts of His heart with ours. It is a ‘boundary’ if you like that is a fruit of our freedom in Christ.

B) God owes me something if I fast.

The second lie we can often believe about fasting is that “IF I DO THIS, THEN GOD MUST DO THAT.” Fasting is not some sort of bargaining tool that you use with the Lord. It’s not about an exchange, it’s about a relationship. We lay aside food in order to lean in closer to God’s voice and hear His heart for our situations or our lives or the lives of others.

Relationship with Rebecca

Imagine if I went to Rebecca who is my wife and lived constantly out of a space of… “Well, I’ve done this for you so what will you do for me?” That’s not love! Marriages and human relationships in general fall apart when they are operated from that basis. Love is just… “I love you, so I’ve done this for you.” That’s what true relationship is. And fasting is not… “Well God, I fasted and yet I haven’t seen anything or you haven’t given me what I want so I’m not doing that again.” Fasting is “Lord, I’m going to give this part of my day and my appetite over to you so you can reveal a deeper part of your heart to me.

2. Truth’s about Fasting

So we know a couple of the main lies that people can believe about fasting, but what is the TRUTH about it? What does God intend for us in this coming month as you lean into God through this blessed practice?

The first thing he desires for you is a perspective of

A) Fullness out of Emptiness.

In Luke chapter 5 Jesus responds to the Pharisees who are talking about why his disciples weren’t fasting. Then Jesus says that they will fast when he is gone (which includes us by the way!) But he tells the Pharisees a little parable about wine… Let me read it to you in Luke 5:36-38.

Luke 5:36–38 NIV

He told them this parable: “No one tears a piece out of a new garment to patch an old one. Otherwise, they will have torn the new garment, and the patch from the new will not match the old. And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins.

Now, because of time, I’m not going to pull this passage apart for you. Maybe at another point we can go over it a little bit more in depth. But the interesting thing I felt the Spirit of God nudge me with this is that when Jesus spoke about fasting… He spoke about a FILLING OF WINE. His perspective of it was a filling of fresh and new things out of the heart of God rather than just an emptying of the old. I think as soon as you mention fasting in our culture, people automatically think about an EMPTYING, but Jesus shows us that we are to think about it as a FILLING of God’s heart!

B) Giving and fasting have a similar heart

The Lord has been speaking to me about this recently… Often we talk about fasting and the phrase ‘GIVING UP SOMETHING’ pops into conversation… But I believe that fasting is not just a giving up of something… It is a giving over of something. When we fast, we are giving God our time and our focus and our energy. And God loves a cheerful giver you know. So when you reflect on how the Lord wants to lead you in this whole fasting February, I want us to view it cheerfully and not grudgingly.

And maybe for some of us, we don’t actually have a quiet time with the Lord at all and so fasting would just be like another chore for you. If that’s you, then maybe you just need to start some form of regular quiet time in this coming month instead. I challenge some of you to start THAT instead. Make THAT the most important and exciting part of your day, just being with Him.

Anyway, Do you know what you are doing when you fast? You are not only giving over something to the Lord, you are also storing a treasure in your heart too.

In the sermon on the mount, Jesus talks about giving, prayer, and fasting all in the same chunk. And then, He goes on to say this right after he talks about fasting… Matt 6:19-21

Matthew 6:19–21 NIV

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

When you give something over to the Lord, you will find that there are hidden treasures of heavens heart awaiting you. You may find His peace there that you haven’t known in years. You may know His Joy in all it’s fullness that you can draw on as your strength through life. You may see His breakthrough in your situation that you were hoping for. But I can guarantee 1 thing… You will find HIM. He is the treasure that we set our hearts on when it comes to fasting. So what is He calling you to this February? What’s His invitation to you? Is it Every day in February? Or is it only 1 day in February? Is it only 1 meal?! What is His invitation to you so that you can pave a pathway for HIs voice in your everyday life?

There are some really practical ways you may want to press in this coming month…

1 way that seems to be benefical for me is intermittent fasting of some kind…

(Unpack 16:8) (Health benefits)

Gospel

Whatever you choose to do and however you respond to His invitation… Please have the perspective of fullness in you fasting rather than emptiness. You know why? Because Philippians 2:6-8 says that Jesus…

Philippians 2:6–8 NIV

Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross!

Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour emptied Himself for us so that we could be full! When we fast, let’s not forget that. We offer our bodies as a living sacrifice Holy and pleasing to Him as the Word says, because He offered His body for us.

So I challenge you… How can you Pave a pathway for God’s presence and voice in your life this coming month through fasting? What is His invitation for you to experience His fullness ina deeper way? It’s just one of the things that you can have in your ‘faith pack’ that can lead you into a more intimate and close relationship with God. But I believe we are going to hear some amazing stories from everyone in this room at the end of the month about what God has done through this wonderful gift of fasting. I look forward to hearing all of your stories and feasting with you all in March… Maybe we could do Smorgesbord September or something… I’ll talk to Rich.

PRAY