The God of Processes

As many of you already know, in my “PMS” years (that’s “pre-ministerial service”, I worked in Physical Therapy. I did so for a little over 17 years. And within the realm of PT, there are understood time frames which one must go through in the healing process.

For instance, if you came in to see us with a doctor’s order for PT, with a fresh rotator cuff surgical repair, then we would explain to you, right from the “get-go”, that you would be looking at at least 12 weeks of Physical Therapy to get your repaired shoulder back to “functional level” and with the understanding that it would take up to a year from the date of surgery, for the shoulder to heal and return to normal strength and use!

This was not up for negotiation and it wasn’t at the discretion of the individual. In other words, it didn’t matter who you were, or what you did in life; a rotator cuff repair took that long to be rehabilitated and allow for the proper healing to take place.

Now, as an individual, you retained the right to go against the therapist’s recommendations and against the doctor’s orders for PT and to do with YOUR shoulder, as you saw fit.

However, if/when you re-injured your shoulder, it would all be on you then!

You couldn’t come back on the therapy staff, or the doctor and try to point blame, because you breached the proper PROTOCOL/PROCESS and went rogue with your therapy!

Does that make sense to everyone? You must follow the guidelines to get the desired and proper result!

Let me ask you a question right now, to make a similar point here. “How did we all end up here this morning?”

Obviously, for most of us, we either drove or were driven to this building, but that is not what I am asking you.

What all did you have to do to for it to be possible for your being here this morning, even before you stepped foot into the vehicle?

I mean, if you think back to the moment that you first woke up this morning and stepped foot out of the bed, (or were DRUG out of the bed, if you are the perpetually late sleeper), what all happened from that moment until you arrived here?

I think that if we went around the room and asked people’s various accounts, we would get some very similar scenarios.

Made/ or poured the first cup of coffee!

Got a shower

Shaved

Fixed har, groomed, etc.

Woke up children and fed them breakfast, got them changed into their clothes, WHIPPED them a few times, etc.

Took care of the pets.

READ the BIBLE and prayed!

ETC.

So, what I mean by all of this, is that in order for you to wake up and get here, ready to worship and hear the word of God as a church family, there was a sequence of steps, a series of events that made up what we call a PROCESS, which took place and VOILA, here you are! RIGHT?

Can we all agree that this is at least in the ball park of how you ended up here?

If there is anyone who can claim something even remotely like, “I went to sleep at home last night and when I woke up, I was here at the church”, then please GENTLY raise your hand, sit quietly and peacefully, right where you are, and some of our ministry team members are going to divide up and call 911 for you, while others gather around you and lay hands upon you, for this disturbing news!

Joking aside, we all, whether we are consciously, cognitively, thinking about it, or not, go through PROCESSES, every single day and pretty much, every single minute of our lives, that we are awake and alert!

For you to simply stand up and prepare to join into the worship of our great God and Savior this morning, your mind and body, instantly, had to go through a series of sequences or a PROCESS, for this to happen.

Now, to you, it seems as mundane and simple as the thought of, “I am getting up now, to worship God”, right?

But in reality, there are many,many things that are taking place behind the scenes, in a series of steps and sequences, that allow this PROCESS to happen. (ELABORATE on the process!)

All of this being said, I wanted to point out to you this morning that everything within our lives is centered around steps and sequences that are needed to complete PROCESSES that allow for normal function!

CAN WE ALL AGREE ON THIS? AMEN!!

Well, the reason that I am bringing this whole thing up, is based upon something that I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, about how people will question the sovereignty of God and ask things like, “If there is an all knowing, all powerful God, like you say there is, then why didn’t He just destroy the devil, the moment that he rebelled and save all of us the trouble that has come from him?”

And if any of you were here and heard me mention this, then you will remember that I stated that God does NOT think the way that we do, He does NOT respond the way that we do, He does NOT see things through the natural eyes that we do and He never makes mistakes! He is perfect and all of His ways are perfect, and thus, He is infallible and without fault!

That line of questioning that millions, upon millions of people ask every year, as to the power and sovereignty of God, is what led me to talk this morning about the subject of, “THE GOD OF PROCESSES”.

It is so critical, as believers and followers of Jesus, that we understand and can agree together this morning, that God operates in steps and sequences and PROCESSES!

Now before any of you can roll your eyes and think to yourself, “I got out bed to hear that God works in PROCESSES”, allow me to move forward with the message and in doing so, re-enforce one of the most important doctrinally sound facts about the Christian’s walk with the Lord!

There are many, many many things that the Lord brings to the mind and attention of the preachers and teachers of His word, that He wants declared and retaught, to the church body.

And all for the simple reason that people will drift away and become lax in their walk with Him and a large majority of the time, it is over small and seemingly minuscule reasons!

For instance, what would most of us admit to being the reasons that cause some separation, or distance, between us and the Lord: ADULTERY, MURDER, RAPE, STEALING, and the likes of these, or is it usually smaller things like, impure thoughts, sinful anger and pride, lies and deceit?

Do you see what I am saying, it is usually not the big, IN YOUR FACE issues that cause many Christians their problems, but rather, it is the small and seemingly insignificant ones.

The ones that we all say that we know and recognize and don’t need being “re-taught” about; yet these are the ones that quite often ensnare us!

And so, for this very reason, we are to be taught and re-taught the ENTIRE word of God over and over again, because, as the Bible states, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”

CAN SOMEONE GIVE ME A BIG AMEN TO THAT?!

So, God operates through steps, sequences and PROCESSES. You will find, as you study the Bible, that He is not usually, the “snap of the finger” deity!

Have you ever considered the creation process? If you turn back to the book of Genesis, chapters 1-2, you can easily see what I am talking about!

God did NOT snap His finger and “POOF” everything was created!

In fact, throughout each day of creation, there is a specific PROCESS that He went through to establish and place everything as it needed to be for life and for productivity.

And what was the driving force that actually put into place these PROCESSES? Well, if you look at each day of the creation account, you will see the same three words being used, “And God said.....”!

It was and still is, the spoken word of God, that gives life to everything and sustains and holds and strengthens every aspect of the universe and beyond!

Even the devil himself, our enemy, ONLY has his existence because God spoke him into being and allows him to be!

And it is because of the PROCESSES of God that He has spoken into existence, that the devil is already a defeated enemy and his time is running out at a rapid rate! And also, it is from the PROCESSES of God, that every Christian derives their strength!

If you study Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics, Anatomy and Physiology and other all scientific disciplines, you will see that everything hinges upon PROCESSES.

Have you ever heard of MRS. GREN? In Biology, this is the acronym for the Seven PROCESSES for all living beings on earth:

MOVEMENT

RESPIRATION

SENSITIVITY

GROWTH

REPRODUCTION

EXCRETION

NUTRITION

These processes must all be in place to for all living beings to continue as a species!

You don’t go from being a 2 year old, to 18 year old in a matter of days! It takes take and developmental PROCESSES, to get there! (Although I think that sometimes we can go backwards that fast!)

To be able to build things, to be able to repair things, to be able to cook things, etc., there are steps and sequences of PROCESSES that we must go through and it is because of the design and will of God that these things work. And not that they just work, but that they work for the good of all creation! (Both in the natural, secular world, as well as the spiritual realm for the believer.)

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Romans 8:28–30 ESV

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.

In that passage, there exists the most profound and important PROCESS of them all; the process of REDEMPTION and our NEW LIFE!

“What do you mean, PROCESS? I believed and Jesus saved me and that’s all that there is to it. Believe and saved.....believe and saved! There ain’t no PROCESS and works involved!”

Well, it is true that at the moment you felt conviction of your sins, by the Holy Spirit of God moving in you and that you repented and turned from your old life to Jesus and confessed with your mouth that He is LORD and the Son of God, that you were saved by the blood of Jesus and set free from sin and shame!

However, that is NOT the end of the story, that moment is only the first of three processes that a believer must go through to enter the Kingdom of God for eternity!

This first step, is the PROCESS of JUSTIFICATION, which simply means, that, upon your belief and profession of faith in Jesus Christ and His finished work on the Cross, you are instantly changed and made new in the eyes of God; you are found to be righteous and pure and God no longer sees your sin, but He sees His Son, Jesus, in you instead!

You have been justified and found right in God’s eyes, as His Holy Spirit now resides within you and all because of the gift of faith by the GRACE of God.

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Romans 4:3 NLT

For the Scriptures tell us, “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.”

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Romans 5:1 ESV

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

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Romans 5:9 ESV

Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.

The next step, or PROCESS that we must go through, is the perpetual step that is ongoing from the moment of your JUSTIFICATION and continues until the final step of GLORIFICATION and that next step is, SANCTIFICATION! (EVERYONE SAY, SANCTIFICATION!)

This the only part of the PROCESS of our SALVATION, that we must, DAILY pursue out of our own free will and volition!

It is not that our works SANCTIFY us, but rather, it is that our decision to follow Jesus and His commandments through the indwelling presence of Holy Spirit, that does this work within us!

Being SANCTIFIED, is simply the process by which we DAILY, become more and more transformed into the glorious image of our Lord and Savior, Jesus, by allowing Holy Spirit to have His way within our lives!

It is the PROCESS of being made holy and it is to continue DAILY in our lives until God calls us home to finish the work.

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2 Corinthians 4:16 ESV

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day.

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2 Corinthians 3:18 ESV

And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

And again from ,

Romans 8:29 ESV

For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.

The finality of our SALVATION process, comes when we leave this earth and God performs the last stage, which we call, GLORIFICATION!

Sanctification is the process of going from one degree of GLORY to another degree of GLORY, as we become more and more like Jesus!

GLORIFICATION, is then that FINAL and perfect work, that God does for us!

The moment that God, Himself, glorifies you, when you leave this earthen vessel, the work of SANCTIFICATION becomes complete and we are perfect and thus in the likeness andthe image of the Christ!

And with this GLORIFICATION step taking place, we are removed, for all eternity, from the power and stain of sin and guilt and shame! Be become HOLY for all eternity and reign with Jesus

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Romans 8:23 NLT

And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us.

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Philippians 3:21 NLT

He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control.

So, can you see what I mean, when I say that God uses PROCESSES to accomplish His perfect and Holy will?

EVERYONE SAY, “God uses PROCESSES!”

Now EVERYONE SAY, “I am a PROCESS!”

Turn to someone and say to them, “You are a PROCESS!”

I said a few minutes ago, that I was going to emphasize was one of the single most important facts about our walk with God. And this very important part of the Christian walk is linked to the PROCESS of our SANCTIFICATION, but it is also how a follower of Jesus interacts with heaven and God, Himself!

I listened to a teaching recently about this very subject I am speaking of, and although I didn’t agree with everything that was said, per se, the message really put into perspective for me, our relationship with God and how we are supposed to interact with Him. But also, the NECESSITY of why we are to interact with Him!

There was a PROCESS that God put into place at creation and it hasn’t changed!

READ from MY NOTES!