The Lost Virtue of Heaven

Good morning and welcome to Living Faith Church. I am so excited to be able to worship Jesus Christ with you on this amazing Sunday. If we have never met before, my name is Aaron. My wife Stella and I are honored to be able to serve on the Pastoral team at LFC. Today we are going to start a brand new thought that is going to take us right up to April. And I’ll be honest with you, I think that what we are going to talk about is so timely for where we are as a church. And, this partners perfectly with where Pastor Ranjy Thomas had us last week talking about change.

How many know, change often leads us to a decision point. When Israel stood at the edge of the Red Sea, they had to make a decision; either they were going to follow Moses, or follow Egypt. And, I think that this thought perfectly sets us up to spend a few weeks discussing the topic of Loyalty. In this series, “In Search of the Loyal Heart” we will discuss Gods search for loyal hearts.

As we begin today I want you to think of this question. Why do I follow God? This could almost be synonymous with, why am I a christian, or for some, why do I go to church? I heard one man say, “I follow God because He is King and that’s that. Even if heaven wasn’t real I’d still follow God.” I’ll be honest, I don’t don’t believe it! Yes, God is God, but you are also human, and you need a reason to follow God. To put it simply, you need a reason to be loyal to God. Now, some have also said, I follow God because He saved my marriage, or because He got me off drugs, or He saved me after that car accident. Can I tell you, these are not good reasons either. What happens to your faith when those reasons are no longer valid? I met with a man once who was struggling with his faith after changing jobs. He told me, God really helped me get through that season of my life, but I’m not in that season of life anymore.

Let me tell you the only reason why you should subscribe to and follow Jesus. You were a sinner in need of a Savior. Jesus is that Savior. Romans 6:23

Romans 6:23 NASB95

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

My loyalty to God is unwavering because my need for Him is unending.

Let me say it this way:

He Saved Me - 2000 years ago when He died in place for my sins

He is Saving Me - Through my confession of faith

And Will Save me - when He comes again to take me to heaven

And, I think that most of us in this room would subscribe to this way of thinking. But what happens in between is a little more fuzzy. What I mean is, yes my heart is committed to Jesus, but sometimes my mind cannot make sense of what He is doing. Just like the nation of Israel standing at the edge of the Red Sea. They had no problem following God to flee Egyptian slavery, but marching into the middle of raging fooding Red Sea with no proof of an incoming miracle is another story.

Today, we will say that Loyalty is define as

“A noble and unswerving allegiance rooted in faith and love”.

And, Loyalty is not proven in comfort. Loyalty is tested in opportunity and during adversity. Or as one stoic philosopher said:

Fire is the test of Gold; adversity of strong men. -Seneca

Change, trials, disappointments, or even simply the war between God and self can become the test of our loyalty toward God and His chosen leaders. So, what is loyalty? What is this: Lost Virtue of Heaven.

If you are taking notes, I believe that loyalty requires three things of us today.

1. Completely Committed Hearts

In the book of 1 Chronicles we read about a king whose name was Asa. Asa was the third 3rd king of Judah and served the Lord with a good heart. But, in the 36th year of Asas reign, the King of Israel rose up against Asa in Ramah, and built stone walls to trap them within their own city. In an effort to save their city, king Asa made an alliance with the king of Syria, buying his services with the silver and gold from the Lords storehouse in the temple. Look at the Lords response to Asa through the prophet Hanani.

2 Chronicles 16:7 NASB95

7 At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah and said to him, “Because you have relied on the king of Aram and have not relied on the Lord your God, therefore the army of the king of Aram has escaped out of your hand.

2 Chronicles 16:9 NKJV

9 For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him. In this you have done foolishly; therefore from now on you shall have wars.”

A commited heart gives direction to an uncommitted mind. How many here in this room have ever had a mind that struggled to make sense of what is happening in your life? How often does our heart know one thing, yet our mind thinks another? And when we lead with our mind, we make foolish decisions because your brain has one purpose and that is to keep you comfortable. That is why you have the fight or flight response in danger. That is why smoking at first is so hard, because your brain knows it’s bad for you, but when you try to quit, your brain says, stopping doesn’t feel good. That is why when you haven’t worked out for 6 months, your brain says, stay in bed, sleep longer, don’t get up! And that is why Asa ran to the king of Syria instead of trusting God, and why far too often we latch on to old ways, and human systems, and things the mind feels safe with, instead of trusting God. But, God says there is a better way- a Loyal way. That when the mind struggles to make sense, the loyal heart takes over. A loyal heart responds to life out of the understanding that God alone directs our destiny. So, we can shake off any temptation for disloyalty, the temptation to cling to the comfortable past, the temptation to do what we’ve always done, the temptation to reject faith for comfort, by giving up on the notion that we control our destiny.

I don’t control the destiny of my life, I can only control whether I turn toward Gods ways or my own ways. And if I will cultivate a heart that loves the ways of the Lord, more than they comforts this life has to offer me, I will always receive the rewards of heaven on my life. I don’t always have to know what’s next in life, I just have to put my faith in the Lord who leads it!

2. Standing in the Gap

And can I tell you, this is going to make some waves! By-in-large, people do not understand loyalty, they understand logic. I could go as far as to say that loyalty actually makes people angry, because a loyal heart is not catering to the wants of the people but rather the heart of Gods leaders. Look at this illustration for the life of Christ. In Mark 12 the Pharisees are looking for a way to trap Jesus in His own words. They think that Jesus is just logical, that Jesus has a some sort of human selfish motivation. So, they ask Jesus, should we pay taxes to Caesar or not? But Jesus speaks not to the situation, or the question, but rather uncovers the disloyalty of their heart.

Mark 12:17 NASB95

17 And Jesus said to them, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” And they were amazed at Him.

Jesus stood in the gap and said, I refuse to party with your self-seeking and argumentative spirit. But, when your mind is too fragile to make sense of what God is doing, I will stand in the gap. One one end there are the people out of synch with heavens will; they become confused, dismayed, even offended at God and His ways. One the other end there is Heavens will, perfect, and unchanging; always with our best interest in mind. It’s seems to often as if the space in between is like a chasm. But, when there are loyal people, people who choose not to live only by their desires, only by what they can understand, but live by faith, live with an unswerving allegiance to Heaven, the chasm closes in. Because the Loyal ones stand in the gap and say- I refuse to play in your disloyal playground, but if you will hold on to my hand, we will find heavens will together.

This is exactly what Jesus did with His disciples in Matthew 16.

Matthew 16:21–23 NASB95

21 From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day. 22 Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You.” 23 But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.”

Jesus had a noble and unswerving allegiance to His Father in Heaven. And with that heart, He was able to stand in the gap between Peters earthly ambition and heavens will. The Loyal Heart is a heart that will stand in the gap between the committed and the confused. It is a heart that is not lead or swayed by ambition, profit, popularity, or even misunderstanding. It is noble, it is unswerving, it is allegiant, and it is rooted in faith and in love.

3. Unwavering Commitment to God

In the book of Judges we find a man named Gideon. God used Gideon, a lowly member of the tribe of Manasseh to defeat the wicked armies of Midian. But, Gideon was insecure in himself. Can I tell you today, insecurity is literally the antithesis of loyalty. Insecurity will always favor self, where loyalty only favors heaven. I think it interesting that we attempt to cure insecurity by boosting self-worth, when the true cure is found not in self-worth, but worship to the Lord. So, Gideon asks for a sign.

Judges 6:36–37 NASB95

36 Then Gideon said to God, “If You will deliver Israel through me, as You have spoken, 37 behold, I will put a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If there is dew on the fleece only, and it is dry on all the ground, then I will know that You will deliver Israel through me, as You have spoken.”

Let, me just for a moment be very clear, when we ask God, “give me a sign”, we make Him out be small, and frail, too capable of making mistakes. I’m only going to follow you if I can be absolutely sure that your plan is fail proof. Gideon was not loyal to God, He was loyal to himself. So, when God proved Himself, he followed. But now Gideon has gone from the invisible man of Manasseh, to the Judge of Israel, and what happens? Chapter 8 tells us that his spoils of war become idol.

Judges 8:24 NASB95

24 Yet Gideon said to them, “I would request of you, that each of you give me an earring from his spoil.” (For they had gold earrings, because they were Ishmaelites.)

Judges 8:27 NASB95

27 Gideon made it into an ephod, and placed it in his city, Ophrah, and all Israel played the harlot with it there, so that it became a snare to Gideon and his household.

Hear me loud and clear church! If you can’t be loyal to God when you don’t understand him, you won’t be loyal when you do! A loyal heart bypasses the mind and talks directly to the spirit. And too many of Gods people are asking God to prove Himself, asking God - show me a sign… He says to you today I already showed you a sign… I rose from the dead - if that’s not good enough for you- nothing will be.

We need less Gideons and more Ruths!

Ruth 1:16–17 NASB95

16 But Ruth said, “Do not urge me to leave you or turn back from following you; for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. 17 “Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. Thus may the Lord do to me, and worse, if anything but death parts you and me.”

I don’t know if anything could speak more clearly of a loyal heart than these words right here. I don’t need you to prove yourself, or convince me, or show me your excel sheet, your org-chart, your 12 step plan of success! God, I said yes before I even woke up! My yes was left over from yesterday!

The Loyal heart is not looking for a reason - It’s already there!

Salvation Response

Maybe today you find yourself in the position of questioning Gods ways. Let me just remind you how far He has already carried you. He is faithful.

Maybe you do not have a personal relationship with God; maybe you are still carrying the anxiety, guilt, and pressure that sin induces in your life. Maybe you are stressed out by trying to navigate life all on your own. Can I assure you; today all of that can end, and you can walk out of this room with hope in your heart? The Bible tells us:

that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 11

Romans 10:9 NASB95

Many people have told me, I don’t want to become a Christian because I can’t keep up that goodie lifestyle. But this verse says nothing about your lifestyle. God is more interested with your heart. If He can get to your heart, He will deal with your actions later.

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. 11

Romans 6:23 NASB95.

We know that sin leads to death – you’ve felt the sting, and pain of sin. The good news is this, Paul calls God’s gift of life a “free gift”. I want to pray with you right now to receive this gift. If you would say, I want God’s forgiveness, I want to accept this gift of life, I want Jesus to live in my heart, raise your hand so I know who I am praying for.

KEEP YOUR HANDS RAISED HIGH - I HAVE A PRAYER PARTNER COMING TO PRAY WITH YOU

“Heavenly Father, I trust You to save me through Your Son, Jesus. Forgive me for all of my sins. Make me brand new. Because You died for me, I want to live for You. Fill me with Your Spirit, so I could follow You. Jesus, You’re now my Lord and the Savior of my life. Take my life. It is Yours. In Jesus’ name, I pray.”