God Sustain You
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GOD SUSTAINS YOU
Terry Cavanaugh
The phone call came unexpectedly. I was unprepared for what was about to happen. My good friend, a fellow pastor, said, “Terry, is it true?” I had no idea what he was talking about. I also had no idea how that phone call would change my life. My friend continued, “we need to talk.”
He came over to the church I was serving. I was totally unprepared when he told me that a member of my church, a highly respected local business man, was telling everyone I had confessed I was addicted to child pornography.
I sat there my hands trembling, tears pouring down my face, unable to response.
“Well, is it true?” he said.
“No, never,” I stammered.
“Well, I hate to say this, but, until we learn different, I have to ask you to step away from helping with the Emmaus community or Chrysalis.”
I was devastated. I was humiliated, but more than humiliated, I was angry. I knew there was no truth in it, but this lie was destroying my life.
But this was just the tip of the iceberg. Over the next six months there was an investigation by my District Superintendent. Several members of the church I was pastoring were questioned. The rumor spread through our small community. I watched helplessly, as my life, my ministry, my future, was being flushed down sewer.
During that trying time, my source of support was God, and my loving wife.
It came out at the end of 6 months that the man everyone was believing and was such a Good Christian was actually lying. When confronted with the truth He said the reason no one else remembered my supposed confession was, I wiped their minds so they could not remember. He also told people I caused him to have a heart attack, because he saw me across the Wal-Mart parking lot.
Now Gentlemen, I know I am not good looking, but I don’t think I am so shocking, that seeing me would cause heart failure.
Hi, My name is Terry Cavanaugh, and the title of this talk is God Sustains You.
Why would anyone invent a lie like that, because he was filled with hostility and maybe some fear. He like, much of the world, was missing the mark in his life. Let me see if I can explain. Our world is filled with hostility, even hatred, just open a newspaper or turn on the news, and you can not miss the hatred. Hatred for different races, different sexes, different religions fill every broadcast.
Which is sad, considering we are all made in the Image of God. But even as we try to live up to that image we fall short. Paul explained it this way.
Rom 7:15
For I do not understand my own actions [I am baffled, bewildered]. I do not practice or accomplish what I wish, but I do the very thing that I loathe [which my moral instinct condemns].
Peter also struggled with falling short. He wanted to be faithful, but here is what happened him.
Peter broke in, “Even if everyone else falls to pieces on account of you, I won’t.”
Jesus said to him, Solemnly I declare to you, this very night, before a single rooster crows, you will deny and disown Me three times.
Matt 26:34
Jesus said to him, Solemnly I declare to you, this very night, before a single rooster crows, you will deny and disown Me three times.
Matt 26:
But Peter is not alone, we have all denied God in one way of another. Even if we know that God is the center of our life’s, we still mess it up.
We let obstacles come between us and God. These obstacles are called sin. The Greek word used for Sin in the New Testament is harmartia. It is an archery term that means, missing the mark. Sin is anything that causes us to miss the target of God’s will for our lives. Anything that comes between you and God is not only sin, but it becomes your God.
There are three main obstacles of sins that come between you and God. There are three ways that we miss the mark.
The first obstacle or hindrance is not believing. Unbelief is a challenge for Christians throughout their life. When you believe in God, it means more than just believing God exists it means putting your trust in him alone.
Did you know that even the devil believes God exists, I am kidding. As Christians, it is sometimes hard to trust God. I confess, during that time when it seemed everyone was believing the lie, it was difficult to trust God with me life.
Matthew 3
IN THOSE days there appeared John the Baptist, preaching in the Wilderness (Desert) of Judea
And saying, Repent (think differently; change your mind, regretting your sins and changing your conduct), for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
This is he who was mentioned by the prophet Isaiah when he said, The voice of one crying in the wilderness (shouting in the desert), Prepare the road for the Lord, make His highways straight (level, direct).
It is also difficult to believe that God loves you. We often feel worthless, unloved, without a reason to live. The devil often whispers in our ears, you have no value, no one loves you, but he lies, he is a lier. God loves you. Let me repeat that God loves you.
God loves you so much he wants to forgive you. God wants to erase your faults, or failure, past. God wants to give you a new start, a clean slate, and do over.
The one thing that may be standing between you and God is your Not Believing what God wants to do for you.
If you don’t believe in God, you will find your self substituting something else for God. You will put something else in God’s place. Why, because as humans we will worship something. Anything that comes before God is your God. Let me repeat that, anything that comes before God, that comes between you and God, is your God. The Bible calls this Idolatry.
If you are aiming at something less than God you are aiming at an idol. An idol does not have to be a wood or stone statue, your idol might be your popularity, or it could be your girl friend, it might be money. It can be anything, even your feelings, your anger, or resentment, or fear. I meet people who have made drugs an idol. What ever the idol is, it will suck the life right out of you. Idols to do not give you hope or joy or forgiveness. Idols take, and take, and take until they have taken complete control of your life.
Some people make themselves into the idol In fact they make themselves in to God. They are completely self-centered. Their idol is self-centeredness. In their minds, they have remake God like them.
We will either believe in a God who made us in his image, or we will remake God in our image.
When someone remakes God in their image, the only thing that matters is them, their feels, their wants, their needs. They really don’t care about other peoples wants, needs, or feelings. They believe, like a little baby, the whole world revolves around them.
But this is not God’s plan for your life, he does not want you to be non-believing, Idol worshiping, or Self-centered.
Did you notice that if you rearrange the first letters of those three you get SIN.
S self-centered
I Idols
N Not Believing.
God does not want you to continue in sin.
Can I share with you some good news. God wants you to live in GRACE.
G tells us Go to God
Don’t let you pride keep you from turning to God. Don’t believe Satan’s lies that you are not worthy. Don’t let anything stop you from Going to God. Be honest with God. He knows everything already so why would you pretend, dah! Admit you sins, you will find that God is not going to condemn you.
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
John 3:17
God is not going to condemn you for admitting the truth, instead God is filled with Love, and forgiveness. He wants to heal you, to save you.
is filled with Love, and forgiveness. He wants to heal you.
But when you Go to God.
Remember who you are in Christ. The R in Grace stands for Remember, Remember who you are in Christ. What other’s think about you is not important. What is important is what Jesus thinks of you, and and loves you so much he stretched out his arms, and died for you on a cross.
Listen to these beautiful words.
No one has greater love [no one has shown stronger affection] than to lay down (give up) his own life for his friends.
God loves you and he wants you to be one of his children.
But to as many as did receive and welcome Him, He gave the authority (power, privilege, right) to become the children of God, that is, to those who believe in (adhere to, trust in, and rely on) His name—
Remember who you are in Christ.
So the G in Grace stands for Go to God
The R- Remember who are in Christ
But that is not all. As the television commercial says, there is more.
The A in Grace stands for Acceptance.
Accept that you have been accepted.
God loves us unconditionally, but he loves us to much to leave us in our sin. We have learned that sin leaves us broken, bruised, and hurting. God loves you too much to leave you there. He wants to treat us like his children.
Let me read
And there came a voice out from within heaven, You are My Beloved Son; in You I am well pleased.
Satan will always point to your past and say, “Look what you have done.” This brings guilt.
Jesus instead points to your future, and says, “Look at what you can become.” This is because of Grace.
The A in Grace stands for Acceptance.
The C in Grace tells us to Connect.
Connect with a Christian Community. As a child of God, You need to be part of a family. Can you be a Christian without a church, I really don’t know. But why would you want to. As a Child of God, why would choose being an orphan when you could have a family of support, acceptance, and encouragement. You are smarting than that.
The last letter is Grace would be E
The E stands for Embrace the Grace life.
Let go of all the images you carry or being less that God image.
Embrace who you are in Christ. In embrace your uniqueness, embrace your strengths, and yes embrace your weaknesses. Maybe God has given you certain weaknesses, so you can bring members of the family who have those strengths around you.
Want every you do, don’t give up. Remember, there is no obstacle you and Jesus can not over come together.
Here is are key verses for you
Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
Are you ready to forgive what lies behind you and strain forward to what lies ahead of you. Forget your life of sin, and strain forward into your life of grace.