Discovery on Adventure Island
Notes
Transcript
25 At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. 26 Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure. 27 “All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. 28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
This past week we had our annual Vacation Bible School program. This year’s theme was Discovery on Adventure Island. Each day sixteen children (Explorers) came to our pretend island to listen to Lighthouse Keeper Pastor and Beacon, a talking Puffin, to learn more about our God and how he brings us love, trust, faith, joy, and hope. The explorers also enjoyed children’s lively music, fun games, tasty theme centered snacks, meaningful crafts, and worksheets to help them discover wonderful truths and remember them.
I find it very enjoyable to spend a week learning based on a theme whether it be this year’s adventure island or past themes such as Knights of the North Castle, Rainforest Explorers or Miraculous Missions. When I was involved with Bible camps, each week we also had a theme and all of our teaching and activities were related to it in a memorable way.
Hopefully, the children were able to discover a deeper relationship with Jesus and will apply what they have learned.
But discovery is not limited to a one week VBS program. Discovering new things and knowledge seems to be very popular. Can you think of a TV Channel that helps viewers discover new things and knowledge — new to them anyway?
Discovery Channel (known as The Discovery Channel from 1985 to 1995, and often referred to as simply Discovery) is an American cable channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav. As of June 2012, Discovery Channel was the third most widely distributed subscription channel in the United States, behind now-sibling channel TBS and The Weather Channel;[2] it is available in 409 million households worldwide, through its U.S. flagship channel and its various owned or licensed television channels internationally.[3]
It initially provided documentary television programming focused primarily on popular science, technology, and history, but by the 2010s had expanded into reality television and pseudo-scientific entertainment.[4][5][6]
As of September 2018, Discovery Channel is available to approximately 88,589,000 pay television households in the United States.
We can also discover new things by going to a library, interviewing people, doing research, watching You Tube, etc. Some people have a deep thirst for knowledge and devote themselves to learning more and more.
One such person in the Bible was Solomon. He is known for several key things.
Successor as King to his father, David, of the nation of Israel about 950 BC.
Built the temple to the Lord.
When made an offer he couldn’t refuse, chose wisdom.
Had hundreds of wives and concubines.
Very wealth,
Devoted many resources to discovering wisdom.
Conclusion? Ecclesiastes 8:16–17 (NIV84)
16 When I applied my mind to know wisdom and to observe man’s labor on earth—his eyes not seeing sleep day or night— 17then I saw all that God has done. No one can comprehend what goes on under the sun. Despite all his efforts to search it out, man cannot discover its meaning. Even if a wise man claims he knows, he cannot really comprehend it.
He realized that there is much to learn in the universe. It amazes us just how much mankind had discovered in the pursuit of science and that the more we know, the more we realize that what we don’t know is even greater. Although some of the conclusions scientists reach disagree with the teachings of the Bible, we must admit that so much has been discovered that just boggles our minds and that try as we might, we too cannot comprehend everything that goes on under the sun — as Solomon admitted after years of painstaking research.
Application: Think about what you can learn if you set your mind to it. Whether it is expanding on what you already know or learning a whole new subject.
Do you know how to play checkers? You can use the same board to play chess?
Can you understand English? Maybe you want to learn Spanish or French?
Can you cook? Maybe there is a recipe you haven’t tried?
Or maybe you want to study history, chemistry, science, or how to catch a whopper on the Eau Pleine?
Well the children didn’t come to VBS last week to learn how to play chess or to Sprechen Sie das Deutsch, or to make pie. They came to discover what God, the source of all wisdom, wants us to know.
24 “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. 25 And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. 26 From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. 27 God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.
One reason Jesus came to earth was to impart this knowledge even though God knew that not everyone would “get it”.
Matthew 11:25–30 (NIV84)
25 At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. 26 Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure. 27 “All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. 28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
We often limit our response to Jesus by confessing that “He died to take away my sins.” Which he certainly did and is the most important thing he did. But he was also a teacher. When we seek to know God the Father, we truly learn about him through his chosen revealer, Jesus Christ. That is why at the end of Jesus’ ministry and Philip asked to see God, Jesus replied.
9 Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10 Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. 11 Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves. 12 I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. 14 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.
This reinforces what Jesus had taught earlier.
14 Not until halfway through the festival did Jesus go up to the temple courts and begin to teach. 15 The Jews there were amazed and asked, “How did this man get such learning without having been taught?” 16 Jesus answered, “My teaching is not my own. It comes from the one who sent me. 17 Anyone who chooses to do the will of God will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own. 18 Whoever speaks on their own does so to gain personal glory, but he who seeks the glory of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him.
We discover who God is through God’s Son Jesus. Our faith him in him leads us to true wisdom. James 3:13–18 (NIV84)
13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. 14 But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. 15 Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. 16 For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice. 17 But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. 18 Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness.
Our faith and being justified leads to sanctified living.
I never went to Vacation Bible School when I was a child. So I can’t approach it from experience the way a child might. Let me explain.
The local congregation is having something called VBS this week. Mom and Dad and grandpa and grandma tell me that I am going and that some of my friends and older siblings will be there. (I’m not sure what “sibling” means.) Oh, brothers and sisters. Anyway, they tell me it will be fun, there will be songs, games, crafts, and snacks and I will learn about Jesus. Well, I like to have fun, to sing, to play games, and snacks and being with my friends. But do I think to myself, “What will I discover?” “What will I know by the end of the week that I didn’t know before?”
Well, whether or not the child has an agenda, the leaders at VBS do. We want to the child to discover more about the God who created, loves, and saved them. We want them to get to know Jesus better. So we use the Bible to teach important, memorable lessons. We teach what Jesus said about those events and we teach about Jesus. So that this same Jesus who gave knowledge to his disciples will still give that knowledge through his modern day disciples so that together we can DISCOVER the wisdom that comes from above. Amen.