Brother Gary Sunday Evening 11/22/15

Brother Gary Sunday Evening 11/22/15

1Ch 29:15  For we are strangers before thee, and sojourners, as were all our fathers: our days on the earth are as a shadow, and there is none abiding.

David dealt with the thought, “We are strangers.”  Every one of us needs to keep it real, “This world is not my home.  We are just passing through.” 

God has been wonderful to us.  If it were not for the mercies of God, probably every one of us would not be here tonight.

We are sojourners.  We are just passing through.  We pay taxes on the place that Karen and I own over there and we are very thankful to have a home, to not be homeless.  We are very thankful that it is comfortable.  We have so much to thank God for.  Let us remember that we are just sojourners and we have this moment.

Our days are as a shadow.  The children’s shadow is as the sunrise or the beginning of life.  For some of us it is near the sunset.  Our time is as a shadow.  We will not be here forever.  We will only be here for a little while.

We have buried some aged individuals.  We have also buried some that were very young.  There is none of us that will continue here on earth.

1Ch 29:16  O LORD our God, all this store that we have prepared to build thee an house for thine holy name cometh of thine hand, and is all thine own.

We want to keep it real, what we have God gave us.  What we gave back to God He gave us.  The day is His.  The air is His.  The gas in our rigs is His.  The money we have, God gave us.  The time we have, God gave us.  The blessing of children, God gave us.

God gave you the ability to hunt, climb, or fish.  We want to be willing to give Him back all He has given us. 

1Ch 29:17  I know also, my God, that thou triest the heart, and hast pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of mine heart I have willingly offered all these things: and now have I seen with joy thy people, which are present here, to offer willingly unto thee.

This I know, my God, you try the hearts.  You have pleasure in uprightness.  God loves uprightness.  God loves holiness.  God loves humility.  God loves love.  He has pleasure in uprightness.

In a world that stinks, that is making God sick.  In a world that is full of injustice.  We are on our way to where we will say, “Even so come Lord Jesus.”  It is terrible what is going on.  God is mighty happy that there are a few people that feel, “In the uprightness of my heart, I have willingly offered all these things.”

“My God you take such pleasure in uprightness.”  Then David comes to himself in the stillness of the Almighty God.  He could listen.  Then he said, “I have offered willingly in the uprightness of my heart.”  Willingly offering is giving without any strings attached.  We as a church offer willingly to God.

There is no greater joy for God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit of God than for you and I to say, “God, my life is a willing sacrifice.  I give my time totally to you.  You can totally rearrange my life and schedule.”

“God, if Karen and I get to have another anniversary, (I am thinking we will.  I am trusting for another fifty weeks.)  God we want to give a willing service to you.”  It could be more important to God that we go visit Sister Julia than that I get my project done.

Don’t give me a list of where you hope I go.  You go.  You pray and carry a burden. 

1Ch 29:18  O LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, our fathers, keep this for ever in the imagination of the thoughts of the heart of thy people, and prepare their heart unto thee:

You and I know that David had to be quiet and listen and God gave Him this burden and he was praying.  “Keep it in the imagination of the thoughts of the hearts of thy people.”  He was praying that we would offer ourselves willingly and have a willing attitude.

Your place of security is being willing before God.  Your place of being ripped of is being your own watch dog.  Be still.  Know what God wants you to do and have your priorities right.  Have first things first.

Be as Jesus prayed.  “Not my will.”

1Ch 29:19  And give unto Solomon my son a perfect heart, to keep thy commandments, thy testimonies, and thy statutes, and to do all these things, and to build the palace, for the which I have made provision.

David loved his son and gave him excellent counsel.  But Solomon lost track of what his dad had so solemnly given to him.  “Give unto my son a perfect heart.”

All of you that had a daddy that loved you, you are blessed.  (For those that didn’t… I was talking to a young lady and said if you had a dad that loved you, she said, “I didn’t.”)  A daddy that loved you is a rare commodity. 

I covet your prayers that I will be a good parent, a good grandparent, and a good father in law.  I covet your prayers that I will have more boldness.

If you cross the ugly spirit of Babylon you will see an ugly spirit.  You will see the beast, the mark, the image and a few other ugly things crop up.

“Give my son a perfect heart to keep thy commandments.”  We are blessed to have Psalms 119.  Someday do a study on that.  You young minds learn what the words that describe the Word of God mean.

Keep thy commandments:  They show us what to do and exact our obedience.  We must be willing and obedient.  Babylon preaches lots of heresy, “Just repent and you can do whatever you want to.”  That is a lie out of hell.

The commandments show us what to do and exact our obedience.  You cannot be saved and not pray.  The bible teaches us to pray and to shun the very appearance of evil.  That is more sound then the very soundness of our building.

The testimonies of God witness, “This is right and this is wrong.”  You have all heard false testimonies.  People get up and lie on someone. Know God; know His testimonies.  They always witness, “This is right and that is wrong.”  The Word of God is always right.

Keep the statutes.  Dear ones, we cannot change what Solomon did, but we can make sure of what we do.  The statutes are God’s word that marks the way.  ‘Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.’  God has a clear path marked.

God’s word describes our conduct.  We have to be upright in our conduct.  I want to tell you, we want to have the Word of God direct how we think, speak, and act.

“Give Solomon a perfect heart to do all these things.”  We have the answer to happiness and to eternal life.  It is not just knowing, but doing.

His job was to do all that God called him to do.

Perfect means complete, safe, especially friendly, peaceful, full, just, made ready, peaceable, quiet, whole, safe, at peace, full, finished, safe, unharmed, peace of mind, and complete.

God wants us to be complete and not lame.  We want to especially be friendly.  God wants us to know how to be friendly to both brothers and sisters, ladies, and men.  Children need someone to be friendly to them in this world that we are in.

We want to have perfect love.