Winning in Every Season

Luke 18:18–25 NIV

A certain ruler asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’” “All these I have kept since I was a boy,” he said. When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy. Jesus looked at him and said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

Introduction

Just the other night our Pastors gathered for our annual Pastor Appreciation Dinner. How many of you appreciate the Pastors at this church? Pastor Sam, Julio, Joe, Peter, Ruthie, David, and Rosemary?

October is the month set aside to appreciate Pastors, and Joanna and I started this tradition for our team to take them out to a nice dinner and just be together. It’s a lot of laughing and it’s always a great time.

But there was a moment there at dinner that me and the other guys started talking about our physical ailments.

You see, when we started the church, I was 38 years old. The other Pastors were right there with me either in our late thirties, and our eldest Pastor had just turned 40. We were peaking physically!

I think a man peaks in health at mid thirties, maybe a bit later, but believe me when I tell you, that something happens at 40.

I don’t care if you work out daily, you are not a 20 year old and your body will find new ways to remind you of that.

So we were at this point where we yapped about our backs, our shoulders, our knees… And my wife cut in to tell us all that we are no longer the scrappy 30 somethings that started the church.

And sadly, we’ve just start coasting down this hill… it’s going to keep getting worse, and worse, and it is going to happen faster and faster…

Transition

Now we laugh about it, but there is wisdom in knowing your season and acting accordingly.

Just because the store name is Forever 21, it doesn’t mean that you are forever 21. At some point, it is unwise for a woman to keep shopping at the forever 21 store. I won’t say when that is, but I pray that the discernment of the Holy Spirit worketh in you.

As we look at the Rich Young Ruler, who had wealth, health and influence all working for him, I want to talk about how we can win in every season of our life.

And that is my sermon title for today.

Winning in Every Season

Childhood

I’m going to start by talking about childhood, but truly this is information for the parents that are here in the room.

Childhood is for Training

I read through the book of Proverbs over the last couple of weeks and it really stuck out to me how Proverbs instructs parents to train their children.

I want you to sit with that word for a second, training.

Before you enter into the military or into law enforcement, there is basic training that is required.

Before a sport season begins, there is spring or summer training.

And, before your children can begin going to school, there is a period of training needed at home.

Proverbs 22:6 ESV

Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.

Biblically speaking, the responsibility of the training of that child is placed on the parents.

Parents are to train their children at a young age so that they are prepared to start engaging with the world.

School is for education, but training happens at the home.

We have some parents who understand this, and they are awake as to what that season requires, and we have some parents who are completely run over by their child.

I love how Pastor Sam put it last month, this is not a democracy, this is a benevolent dictatorship.

If parents do not train their children, the world will

In this season of your child’s life, you are setting the boundaries and those are either set intentionally by you, or they are the result of the things that you have allowed in to your home.

Parents, you need to engage with your child and know what is most important for them in this season.

Deuteronomy 6:6–9 ESV

And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

Youth / Young Adult

The next season of your life is when you are a youth or young adult.

These are the years of testing and finding your identity.

You now have more autonomy from your parents, you are spending more time in school and activities, and if you’ve earned from freedom from a childhood well-lived, you have some independence. Not complete independence, but you have some independence.

What is natural in this season of your life is that you want to test things.

You know what you’ve been taught to do, but you are starting to observe your peers doing things that you weren’t brought up doing, and you’re thinking maybe you’d like to do what they are doing as well.

This is natural; I want to say that. But the don’t think for one second that the Bible hasn’t given you instructions on how you win in this season of your life.

So let me try and show you something with some engagement in the room.

How many adults in the room have a testimony, and I’m talking about you had to overcome addiction, you might had done time, you did some things in life that were completely out of God’s created order?

Ok, keep those hands up for one second… Youth, look around the room for a second.

Ok, now don’t put your hands down, keep them up….

How many of you, keep your hands raised for a moment, want your children to go through that and experience that as well? If you don’t want them to share your testimony and you want them to have a “boring testimony” because they grew up in church, were active in youth group, marry a Christian, and honor God throughout their youth, put your hands down.

Keep looking around the room…

Listen to what I’m about to say… The Boring Testimony is the Goal

Yes, your inclination is to test the limits of your freedom and start to do things the worlds way, but just know that God’s word doesn’t point you to that.

Ecclesiastes 12:1 NIV

Remember your Creator in the days of your youth, before the days of trouble come and the years approach when you will say, “I find no pleasure in them”—

Our focus, when we are young, is to keep our mind on Him.

When we think that we want to push up against the boundary lines of our home, talk to someone. Pastors, mentors, and, Lord willing God fearing grandparents.

Here is one of my favorite verses in the Bible for our youth.

1 Timothy 4:12 NIV

Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.

Set an example for who? The believers. Not just your peers, but all believers.

You can do things as a young adult that you won’t have time to do as you get older. Do it!

Live on mission. Go to the mission fields. Set your life on fire for Jesus!

Adulthood

Speaking of Adulthood, let’s talk about that season now. This is your season of building and taking responsibility.

You still have youth and strength on your side, but this is your time to build. This is the time that you set your mind to work whole heartedly to build for your future.

If I can just speak for a moment about my own life, when I left Bible College I anticipated a life and career in full-time vocational ministry. I thought I would always work for the church. Thank God, that he redirected me to the marketplace until I was 33 years old. During that time I was working, I was getting my Masters Degree, I was buying my first home, and I was building wealth. When did I do that? I went hard from 23 to 33.

I want to say that here because that period of my life was deeply formational for me and so that you don’t think, “Pastor doesn’t know what he’s talking about, he’s never worked outside the church.” I have, and I was crushing my career when I did.

I was laying bricks during that time…

And when the doors opened up for me to come back to church, I was able to do that on a very solid foundation of working hard in my career.

Colossians 3:23 NIV

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters,

Too many Christians are coasting and not hard at work, working for the Lord.

Your boss is not your only boss. You have someone greater and mightier that is watching you, and I’m sure he’s wondering if you are using every God given gift and ability to honor Him where he has placed you to work.

And, if you are in this season and raising children already, you owe it to them to work hard.

I like this quote about this season of our life… we can work hard now, so that that we can live easy later, or you can live easy now, but you’ll have to work hard later.

Maturity / Middle Aged

Then we get to the next season of your life as you approach Middle Age, and this is a season for Mentoring and Investing into Others.

Here what I am about to say, and this may sting a little bit. You know you are doing this right when people seek you out for mentorship and advise.

When I worked corporate, most of my lunches were spent with men in this age group. As a matter of fact, my peers were hanging around at happy hour and I found my place at the retirement parties and farewell lunches. I was looking for a mentor.

If this is your season, this is where you begin to give back to those who are coming up after you and reinvesting into the next generation.

Titus 2:3–8 NIV

Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Then they can urge the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God. Similarly, encourage the young men to be self-controlled. In everything set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, seriousness and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned.

Maturity is not about knowing truth-it’s about reproducing it in others.

Reflection and Legacy

When we get to old age, the word of God teaches us that we are to finish well and leave a Godly legacy.

I know that many of us don’t like to think about old age, but if we do these things right, we’re all going to get there. When we do, we want to echo the words of Paul to Timothy.

2 Timothy 4:7–8 NIV

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.

Listen, we want to get to our old age and have the ability to say these words.

Finishing well is something that i hear more and more Pastors talking about. In 2020, as God was purging the church, you heard more and more Pastors say, “Man, I want to finish well…”

I don’t want to enter my old age with my life having been scandal after scandal.

I want to be married to the wife of my youth, I want my children to want to be close to me, and I want my grandchildren even closer.

They say grandchildren are the reward for not killing your kids.

I think God wants that for you.

It’s not about how you start, but how you finish your journey of faith.

And that leads us into one more season that I don’t think we think enough about…

Eternity

Life beyond this life… and it is supposed to be a life of rest, reward and eternal joy.

Revelation 21:3–4 NIV

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

When we win in every season, this is the reward for the believer. We don’t just live for now, but we live with a hope in eternity and that we are going to live again.

Our final season is not an ending, but a beginning of eternal life with Christ.

Conclusion

Let’s come back to the Rich Young Ruler for a second… He was in his season of young adulthood. This is the season that I mentioned and said that this is the season to adventure for Christ.

Misunderstanding your season can cost you everything. You need to know your season and commit to winning in your seasons.

Luke 2:52 NIV

And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.