Perfection

Today is the first week of the NFL season and I have a question for you that probably most of you know the answer to. How many teams have gone undefeated and finished the season by winning the Super Bowl?

Only one,

the 1972 Miami Dolphins.

But if you knew that I bet most of you don’t know and some don’t care, but I think you should care about people and the Dolphins were team of people. In that season, the Dolphins great quarterback Brian Griese, broke his leg in the 5th game. This is the 1970s, professional football players still smoked. These aren’t the peak physical specimens they are today. The team turned to 38 year old Earl Morrel to quarterback. He was considered “washed up” as they say. He had been good way back when, and the season seemed lost. But Morrel was exactly who they needed because they had a great defense and running game on offense. They needed a leader for the moment. And they won all their games until they came up against their greatest challenge. The 1972 Pittsburgh Steelers and they couldn’t get a lot happening from their quarterback, but amazingly Griese was available, leg healed, so Head coach Don Shula simply asked, "Are you ready?" Griese's response was a simple, confident, "Yes, I'm ready." The Dolphins beat the Steelers and then did what no one else has done since, they won one more game beating Washington in the Super Bowl.

Why does that matter? Because some of you came to church thinking your not worth much, your days are behind you, but God isn’t done with you yet. You could be like Earl Morrel and God has a specific role for you right now. God is doing something perfect and invites you to be a part.

Others of you think your so hurt, so injured, so, dare we say, sinful, that God is also done with you.

I’m telling you, God is not like that.

1 John 1:9 NLT

But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.

Like Griese God is doing something perfect and chooses those who have been thought to be cast aside. He simply calls you to follow Him. Then sometimes he specifically asks you for your own benefit, “Are you ready?”

Are you ready for the opportunity of blessing that God lays out in front of you

You need to be ready with the answer.

Because we’ve been talking about the Biblical book of James for a couple of weeks now, and it has made us rethink a lot of things in our life. Things that we often think are miserable and worthless, like going through really hard times, poverty, or incredible temptation. We often spend a lot of time trying to avoid hard times, a loss of money or even temptation, like experiencing any of those things means that God is already punishing us, that God hates us.

Like a broken bone makes a quarterback think they are done, for us non athletes: hard times, poverty or incredible temptation can make us feel like we have no future.

But instead we are told that

James 1:2 NLT

Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.

James 1:9 NLT

Believers who are poor have something to boast about, for God has honored them.

James 1:12 NLT

God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.

Troubles = opportunity for Joy, poor = honor, and temptation + endurance = crowns.

I can tell you that no one football fan today would say losing your starting quarterback to a broken leg is the way to perfection. Just like the majority of people around you would throw up their hands in despair and disapproval if you faced poverty, troubles and temptation.

But 1972 was a long time ago and the book of James was written over 2,000 years ago. A lot has changed since then. So we continue in the first chapter of the book of James to see what is said about God’s truth in our time:

James 1:16–18 NLT

So don’t be misled, my dear brothers and sisters. Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession.

Reading this is kind of weird but incredibly powerful. We talked about perfection in sports but that is just a fun game. Why does it matter if God is good and gives perfect gifts?

It’s vitally important. It is so important it could save you years of misery and possibly lots and lots of time and money.

But you might miss what God has for you in this part of the Bible, because it was originally written in Greek, and when gets into the English it gets a little confusing and some meaning gets lost.

See there are a couple of words for giving used here. There is dosis and dorema in the Greek the words mean a little different things and don’t mean much different in English: One word is the actual gift and the other is the way the gift is actually given. You see I could get a new football jersey to mark this beginning of the football season which would be great, but if it was thrown at me with disgust by the gift giver like I can’t believe you want me to spend so much money on clothing or given to me with something like here is your jersey so I expect the entire house will be clean each week, some kind of expectation with the gift, than that would be a bad way to receive a gift.

The way we are given a gift is important as much as the gift.

Or what if there was a big surprise with streamers, music, tons of food, everybody I liked was there and the gift I received came in a great box with amazingly beautiful wrapping paper but it was a box of

popsicle sticks.

Now some of you might be like that’s dumb because you may not know, not only are popsicle sticks pretty lame, I absolutely hate popsicle sticks. They are in a category of running fingers across chalkboards. Hate them. Can’t stand looking at them or thinking about them. Last week, at school I saw one, refused to touch the trash but didn’t want to see it again. I dragged it with my foot and the wonderful first grade teachers offered to pick it up for me and throw it away.

I would hate a gift of popsicle sticks.

Why does this matter?

Do you know how many men and women I have talked to who do not believe that God will give them a good love life? a wonderful job? a fulfilling life? God could save us from our sins but He has no idea how to have a good time.

You even hear it when people say, don’t pray for patience because God will test you. Like God is thee worst gift giver in the world.

NOT SO!

James 1:16–17 NLT

So don’t be misled, my dear brothers and sisters. Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father,

In my study on this scripture I came upon a writer, Warren Wiersbe, who pointed out King David learned this truth of God through the prophet Nathan after David had an affair with Bathsheba and arranged for her husband to be killed in battle.

2 Samuel 12:7–8 NLT

Then Nathan said to David, “You are that man! The Lord, the God of Israel, says: I anointed you king of Israel and saved you from the power of Saul. I gave you your master’s house and his wives and the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. And if that had not been enough, I would given you much, much more.

You see we think we know what is best for us. We think that we have to go after what we like. We have to make it happen. No one will make it happen for us and any other self-help stuff people are laying down. David’s plan for getting the beautiful woman was solid. He just used his kingship and then had his way with the woman. Than when there was a problem he solved it using His kingship. He got it.

What he didn’t see is that evil always comes with a price. It is a cost that must be paid. Justice demands it.

David didn’t see that God had already given Him enough and God was capable of giving him so much more.

God came to bless us. He came to give us a life where the stuff put upon is actually easy and light. Do you remember what we quote in the time of laying down our burdens:

Matthew 11:28–30 CSB

“Come to me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, because I am lowly and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Jesus also said,

John 10:10 CSB

A thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come so that they may have life and have it in abundance.

God already died for us. He called us and gave us new life into His family. Every blessing God gives in the right time and the right way.

When I find myself in sin it is when I am pursuing what I think will make me happy, at the time I think it makes me happy and I am unwilling to wait, unwilling to pursue what God would have for me, and willing to accept what I can make happen without awareness of all that I am missing out on by not waiting and relying on God..

The original sin of humanity was believing that God wouldn’t give us what was good for us.

Genesis 3:2–5 NLT

“Of course we may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,” the woman replied. “It’s only the fruit from the tree in the middle of the garden that we are not allowed to eat. God said, ‘You must not eat it or even touch it; if you do, you will die.’ ” “You won’t die!” the serpent replied to the woman. “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.”

According to the serpent God was holding out on us, he didn’t want us to have the good stuff. We still see this today. Often people point out how sin doesn’t actually hurt them. It doesn’t cause plagues or famines.

The material is not all their is to this world. Things we can see, touch, taste, feel, and hear is not all that there is.

John 4:24 NLT

For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”

When we go through life thinking that all of nature is just a this thing causes this thing we forget that there are spiritual forces at work. We forget that God is patient and his time frame is different. He punished the sins of Israel that happened over centuries.

God is incredibly patient. Perfectly loving. Perfectly working to redeem us all.

2 Peter 3:8–9 NLT

But you must not forget this one thing, dear friends: A day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day. The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.

God is good and the gift of His return will come at the perfect time.

God gives perfect gifts at the perfect time

Garth Brooks sang a song called thank God for unanswered prayers. The lyrics of the song are:

Just the other night at a hometown football game My wife and I ran into my old high school flame And as I introduced them, the past came back to me And I couldn't help but think of the way things used to be

She was the one that I'd wanted for all times And each night I'd spend prayin' that God would make her mine And if He'd only grant me this wish I wished back then I'd never ask for anything again

Sometimes I thank God for unanswered prayers Remember when you're talkin' to the man upstairs And just because He doesn't answer doesn't mean He don't care 'Cause some of God's greatest gifts are unanswered prayers

She wasn't quite the angel that I remembered in my dreams And I could tell that time had changed me, in her eyes too it seemed We tried to talk about the old days, there wasn't much we could recall I guess the Lord knows what He's doin', after all And as she walked away, well, I looked at my wife And then and there I thanked the good Lord for the gifts in my life

My friends, what happens when we actually trust that God knows what He is doing.

What happens when we know that what we have right now is enough for what God wants to do through us right now? What happens when believe what that God is right we are actually supposed to love our neighbors as ourselves? What happens we trust God with loving our enemies? What happens when we trust God with acting honestly even when it hurts?

I know that God will answer with his gifts, at the right place and at the right time. And the same God who was at work way back then is still at work today

James 1:17 NLT

Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow.

This is actually an astronomical point. You guys remember seeing the eclipse a few years back and have you ever seen a lunar eclipse? The light that was there goes dark.

James is writing that the metaphor of God being light, He is even better than our astronomical light because He is not like even the sun or moon that goes dark sometimes when it should be light. God is always constant, always consistent. Never changing. So yeah, God knew what would satisfy David and he can satisfy you.

Some of you still think though, that times have changed and God needs to catch up to the times.

Today, this day, ask God to increase our faith. Let us trust God with the idea that He actually gives really good gifts. He actually gives really great blessings. Even more than salvation, thought that is enough. Even more the peace, though that is enough. Even more than relationship with God, though that is enough. Even more than a purpose in life, though that is enough. God will continue to bless us if we follow Him.

So this week as you face a new temptation, a new chance to go against what God would have you do because you know, people will tell you God is all nice and stuff but he doesn’t pay the bills. Why don’t you focus on all the blessings he has actually given you.

All of them. From the friends, family, memories, the ability to be blessed by God in your poverty, the ability to know him in the midst of trials, the overcoming of temptations. The fact that you are different than you were before. The mind you had to think of all of that, the eyes you had to see it, the skin you have to feel it, the peace you live in.

All gifts of God. Perfect gift at the perfect time.