Don't Stop Digging 2 - Rocks

Jeffrey Burkhardt

Don't Stop Digging • Sermon • Submitted 5 years ago

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Remove the Rocks

Genesis 26:17–22 NKJV

17 Then Isaac departed from there and pitched his tent in the Valley of Gerar, and dwelt there. 18 And Isaac dug again the wells of water which they had dug in the days of Abraham his father, for the Philistines had stopped them up after the death of Abraham. He called them by the names which his father had called them. 19 Also Isaac’s servants dug in the valley, and found a well of running water there. 20 But the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with Isaac’s herdsmen, saying, “The water is ours.” So he called the name of the well Esek, because they quarreled with him. 21 Then they dug another well, and they quarreled over that one also. So he called its name Sitnah. 22 And he moved from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it. So he called its name Rehoboth, because he said, “For now the Lord has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.”

gen

What does it take to reopen the wells of our forefathers? The Philistines plugged the wells with rocks, old wood, dead carcasses and garbage to ruin the well for future use. Isaac and his men would have to remove all the garbage etc to make the well fresh once again. Once the well was cleared the water would start flowing again, the well would become clean once again and be useful for drinking and watering the flocks and land.

Isaac’s servants discover two new wells and dig them out so that they produced fresh water. These new wells are named “Dispute” and “Contention” as the Philistines quarreled with Isaac ( ). Eventually Isaac digs a well that no one quarrels over and he names it Rehoboth, saying, “Now the Lord has given us room and we will flourish in the land.”

Rocks are Heavy

How much does a large rock weigh?

Answer from: Pamela B. Zohar, M.S. in geology, +35 years work experience in exploration and mining geology.

However, as a rule of thumb, the average sort of rock (neither especially light nor especially heavy) weighs ABOUT 2.5 times more than an equal volume of water. So a gallon container is a less than a cubic foot in size, right? And a gallon of water weighs roughly 8 pounds. So a rock about the size of a gallon container would weigh about 20 pounds. Hefty, but not an impossible load to lift (rocks kind of define the term ‘dead weight’).

Very VERY few rocks weigh less than water (and float), but quite a few types of rocks weigh more than the ‘average weight’, so a rock about that big would weigh BETWEEN 8 and, say, 30 or so pounds, with the average closer to 20 pounds.

Answer from: Guy Maslen, geophysicist, leading agile projects in a geoscience org.

The average rock density is about 2.6g per cubic centimetre. A rock that's roughly a cube and 20cm per side would weigh around 21kg. Or a rock that's about 8" per side would weigh around 46lb

A rock that's roughly a cube and 20cm per side would weigh around 21kg. Or a rock that's about 8" per side would weigh around 46lb

If you are talking bigger than that, you can scale up from those figures.

If you want to get more exact, here's some densities:

Hebrews 12:1–2 NKJV

1 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Intentionality

Run so that you may obtain the prize. To do this you must carefully examine what you’re wearing and carrying. The weights and sins the author of Hebrews is talking about in are wrong beliefs. The whole book’s exhortation could be summed up in

Hebrews 2:1 NKJV

1 Therefore we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift away.

Pay close attention to what you’re believing. Wrong beliefs weigh down your heart, entangle your feet, distract your attention, and deplete your energy. They will take you out of the race. You must identify what your weights are and resolve to do whatever it takes to lay them aside.

Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.

We must know Who we Believe

Who we Believe

2 Timothy 1:12 NKJV

12 For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day.

We must know What We Believe

One of the heaviest weights we carry that keep us from running is “Stinking Thinking”

A lot of it comes from word that have been spoken over us which lead to self-doubt and condemnation.

First of all we must understand that condemnation is not from God:

John 3:16–17 NKJV

16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

God uses something else called conviction - let me teach you the difference.

2 Corinthians 7:9–10 NKJV

9 Now I rejoice, not that you were made sorry, but that your sorrow led to repentance. For you were made sorry in a godly manner, that you might suffer loss from us in nothing. 10 For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death.

2 Cor 7:9-10

Condemnation convinces you that you are guilty of sin for the purpose of pushing you away or using the sin as a barrier between you and God.

Conviction convinces you that you are guilty of sin for the purpose of drawing you to the Savior through the love and kindness of God.

John 6:37 NKJV

37 All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.

Romans 2:4 NKJV

4 Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?

Romans 2:4 ESV

4 Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?

romans 2:4 ESV

We must know who we are:

God says we are:

...loved ()

…His

1 John 3:1 NKJV

1 Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.

1) …worthy () …purposed ()

…worthy

Zephaniah 3:17 NKJV

17 The Lord your God in your midst, The Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.”

) …purposed ()

…purposed

Jeremiah 29:11 NKJV

11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.

)

https://kenboa.org/spiritual-formation/who-does-god-say-i-am/

I am a child of God.

But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name. ()

I am a branch of the true vine, and a conduit of Christ’s life.

I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. . . . I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing. (, )

I am a friend of Jesus.

No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you. ()

I have been justified and redeemed.

. . . being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus. ()

My old self was crucified with Christ, and I am no longer a slave to sin.

. . . knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin. ()

I will not be condemned by God.

Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. ()

I have been set free from the law of sin and death.

For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. ()

As a child of God, I am a fellow heir with Christ.

. . . and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him. ()

I have been accepted by Christ.

Therefore, accept one another, just as Christ also accepted us to the glory of God. ()

I have been called to be a saint.

To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, saints by calling, with all who in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours. (; cf. ; ; )

In Christ Jesus, I have wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption.

But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption. ()

My body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who dwells in me.

Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? . . . Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? (; )

I am joined to the Lord and am one spirit with Him.

But the one who joins himself to the Lord is one spirit with Him. ()

God leads me in the triumph and knowledge of Christ.

But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place. ()

The hardening of my mind has been removed in Christ.

But their minds were hardened; for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains unlifted, because it is removed in Christ. ()

I am a new creature in Christ.

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. ()

I have become the righteousness of God in Christ.

He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. ()

I have been made one with all who are in Christ Jesus.

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. ()

I am no longer a slave, but a child and an heir.

Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God. ()

I have been set free in Christ.

It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery. ()

I have been blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. ()

I am chosen, holy, and blameless before God.

. . . just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. ()

I am redeemed and forgiven by the grace of Christ.

In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace. ()

I have been predestined by God to obtain an inheritance.

In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will. ()

I have been sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise.

In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise. ()

Because of God’s mercy and love, I have been made alive with Christ.

But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved). ()

I am seated in the heavenly places with Christ.

. . . and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. ()

I am God’s workmanship created to produce good works.

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. ()

I have been brought near to God by the blood of Christ.

But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. ()

I am a member of Christ’s body and a partaker of His promise.

. . . the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel. (; see also 5:30)

I have boldness and confident access to God through faith in Christ.

. . . in whom we have boldness and confident access through faith in Him. ()

My new self is righteous and holy.

. . . put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth. ()

I was formerly darkness, but now I am light in the Lord.

. . . you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light. ()

I am a citizen of heaven.

For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. ()

The peace of God guards my heart and mind.

And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. ()

God supplies all my needs.

And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. ()

I have been made complete in Christ.

. . . in Him you have been made complete, and He is the head over all rule and authority. ()

I have been raised up with Christ.

Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. ()

My life is hidden with Christ in God.

For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. ()

Christ is my life, and I will be revealed with Him in glory.

When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory. ()

I have been chosen of God, and I am holy and beloved.

So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. ()

God loves me and has chosen me.

. . . knowing, brethren beloved by God, His choice of you. ()

We must know that we go lower to go higher.

Philippians 2:5–11 NKJV

5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, 7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. 9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Matthew 23:11–12 NKJV

11 But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. 12 And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.

Acts 6:5–8 NKJV

5 And the saying pleased the whole multitude. And they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit, and Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas, a proselyte from Antioch, 6 whom they set before the apostles; and when they had prayed, they laid hands on them. 7 Then the word of God spread, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were obedient to the faith. 8 And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and signs among the people.

See struggles sermon:

Focus

You can’t run aimlessly. Though all Christians share similarities in their races, the Lord gives each of us a unique race to run. And not everyone’s weights are the same. Remember, “whatever does not proceed from faith is sin” (). And God has assigned to each of us the measure of faith we need for our respective races (). What may be a weight for you may not be a weight for someone else. So be careful comparing.

You’re responsible for your race. “Understand what the will of the Lord is” for your race (), be content with the race you’ve been given (), and focus hard on how to win it.

Hebrews 13:5 NKJV

5 Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

We must stop comparing our life/walk with the life/walk of others:

See struggles sermon:

Daily Training

Serious runners discipline their bodies. They “[train] by constant practice” to discern how best to run their races (). Laying aside weights and sins isn’t a one-time thing. It’s a skill acquired through constant practice. So don’t be discouraged that you haven’t mastered your race yet. Don’t give up. Keep at it. Do it again. And again. And again.

1 Corinthians 9:24–27 NKJV

24 Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. 25 And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown. 26 Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air. 27 But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.

Romans 13:11–14 NKJV

11 And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. 12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. 13 Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. 14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.

Ephesians 6:11 NKJV

11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

Ephesians 4:17–24 NKJV

17 This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, 18 having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; 19 who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. 20 But you have not so learned Christ, 21 if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: 22 that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, 23 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.

Hebrews 12:1-

Hebrews 12:1–2 NKJV

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