Sermon Tone Analysis

This morning I want to address a question of Balance.

We know that live and our time has many different pulls and drains, and we know there is so much need all around us.

Indeed the need seems to increase year by year, month by month, despite all the claims of our advancement and evolution as a race....

And as I think about the Christians call in all this

that we are to walk in them, I am ever more drawn to the need for balance in our lives, to enable us to do that.

Think of the old balance beams that used to in school PE classes and maybe still is!

The goal to get across that narrow walkway, and the better your balance the easier to get across.

Now there are different ways to get across, to crawl, shuffle etc, but the quickest and easiest way across comes by way of perfect balance.. when all forces are working together as it work to create the perfect point of opportunity to walk across the balance beam.

Now, the Christian life is just like that, we needs to be balanced to walk in what the Lord has for us, and if we are balanced it will be in the best and easiest way for us.

Transitional - So in what ways are we to be balanced, and where do we see that in our portion of scripture this morning?

Firstly we are to

Balance our Works vs 30-31

verse 30 - all the things they had done

they of course where doing what the Lord had commanded them to do

called and sent forth

Of course the need was never ending

there is always a need

until the Lord ushers in his eternal Kingdom and we head in eternity where there will be no sin or suffering

that state of perfect bliss

what a day that will be, but until that day, there will be need

We can’t escape it, its all around us

verse 31 - Christ says come apart

But we must balance our work, with rest

Jesus says, rest a while

and that folks means say no to need at times

great need, but must be a balanced in output

all work and no rest

leads to burn out

we have to become balanced in the art of saying no to some immediate needs

So we have to balance our works, secondly we have to...

Balance our Walk vs32

verse 32 “by ship privately

the disciples came away from the demands

but there time away from the work was never time away from Jesus

now many make this mistake, to down tools form mission and ministry, is take time away from the Lord

to have some me time

we make the mistake of moving from focus on others, to the focus on self and miss the Master in all this

we must watch our walk with the Lord

not dragging behind

not running ahead

But having a balanced walk with the Lord

not al about others

not all about us

but focussed upon him

our relationship with Jesus is the most important thing we have and we should guard it as such

this means short accounts with the Lord

this means a devotional time in God’s word

this means walking with the Lord

Our work has to be balanced, our walk has to be balanced and finally we are to...

Balance our Witness vs 33-34

of course, I have said there is indeed great need, and the people flocked to Jesus

Jesus came out vs 34

he was moved with compassion

here is what I want us to notice

vs 34.. he became to teach them many things

he was moved with compassion

so he began to teach them

thats the ultimate need, the spritual, not to the neglect of the physical but in balance with it

Jesus had it right, of course he did he was GOD

They needed to be fed the spritual food of the word of God

before the physical food

I am reminded at this point of Proverbs 29:18

another one of the most mis interpreted passages of scripture out there

i dealt with another one last Wednesday at Bible study, so why not deal with another one this morning

This is how most Christians read this verse: Where there is no vision, the people perish.

That’s it!

But whatever happened to the other half of this verse?

How come nobody reads this part: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he?

If they did read the rest of these verses, the meaning changes all together.

How you may ask?

Well let’s take a look!

With regards to Proverbs 29:18 “Where there is no vision” simply means no teaching of the Word of God, which was brought to the people by the prophets, who received the Word from the Lord through visions.

its a revelatory word

the word of God!

In 1 Samuel 3:1 it states:

Amos 8:11-12 further states:

Simply put, “the people perish” without the Word of God!

Next part of Proverbs 29:18 says: “but he that keepeth the law, happy (or blessed) is he.”

This is said in great detail in Psalm 19:7-11

The word of God is central to our spiritual life, and indeed we should see that in our witness

yes we are to help with the physical need

but we must make sure we see the spiritual need

so our witness has to have the right balance..

we have to show Christ in our actions yes, but the right balance always has the Word of God, the teaching of Christ, the declaration of the Gospel first and foremost

as I was reminded at our mens meeting yesterday

as Paul exhorted timothy

the people perish because of a lack of the word of God

why, because the balance with most Christians is not right

they have the physical needs priorities over the spiritual

and thats the wrong balance to have

Conclusion

So when it comes to the question of Balance, we are to be balanced in our works, our walk and our witness.

And when we are not balance we, are going to struggle, just as the natural being will struggle when the balance is wrong, so will the spiritual.

To fix things we might to make some changes, as we work towards restoring perfect balance in our lives

In an article by Dr. Kenneth Cooper, the man who invented aerobics.

He tells the story of a lady who was 46 years old and came to him.

She had back pains that were so terrible that she could not walk further than 75 feet without having to sit down.

She was stooped over and couldn't stand up.

As a result, it killed all of her social life, all of her outings.

She was in constant pain and disability.