I Wish We Had That!
Proverbs 24:1 Be not
thou envious against evil men, neither desire to be with them.
Proverbs 24:19 Fret
not thyself because of evil men, neither be thou envious at the wicked;
Intro: In these
verses, David is giving some excellent advice.
Don’t envy the wicked!
As children of God, we have a lot of things that the world
doesn’t have.
A. A
Father – their father is the devil! We
have a great heavenly Father
B.
Fellowship with God and God’s people – the world is not a people! (I Pet. 2:10)
C.
Forgiveness – remember the sin and guilt and shame before you got saved?
D.
Future – as a Christian, we have a lot to look forward to – the world has Hell
to look forward to.
There are a lot of things that we have the world doesn’t
have. We should not envy them.
But….
There are some things that the world has that I wish we had!
They are outdoing God’s people in some areas that I wish we
could learn from them…
I. Excitement
At most sports events, the place is buzzing with excitement
and anticipation at the upcoming event.
People talk about it for days prior – trying to figure out
what will happen.
The world gets so excited about everything!
God’s people don’t get excited about anything.
·
Psalms
100:4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with
praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.
·
Psalms
122:1 I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the
LORD.
·
Romans
12:11 Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;
·
2
Corinthians 7:7 And not by his coming only, but by the consolation wherewith he was
comforted in you, when he told us your earnest desire, your mourning, your
fervent mind toward me; so that I rejoiced the more.
·
James
5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye
may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth
much.
·
1 Peter
4:8 And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for
charity shall cover the multitude of sins.
II. Expectations
The world is always so hopeful –
·
Of their favorite politician
·
Of their stock market
·
Of their chances of getting promoted or getting
a raise
·
Of seeing their favorite athlete break a record
or accomplish some great sporting feat or making it to the playoffs or
championship
·
Buy lottery tickets every week, expecting to
win.
No matter how many times they get disappointed, they always
come back hopeful and full of anticipation.
But God’s people? One
let down – one disappointment and their world comes crashing in on them.
They lose faith, they lose hope, they lose any positive
outlook on anything.
Illustration:
Children of Israel in the wilderness – after every miracle, they said, “We are
going to die!!”
David said…
·
Psalms
71:14 But I will hope continually, and will yet praise thee more and more.
·
Psalms
39:7 And now, Lord, what wait I for? my hope is in thee.
We need to have some expectations in our:
·
Prayer life
·
Church attendance
·
Child training
·
Soul winning
III. Effort
·
Ecclesiastes
9:10 Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is
no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou
goest.
The world gives it their best in business world, in the
sporting world, in the entertainment world.
The world understands that success comes after hard work and
preparation.
God’s people don’t want to do anything, and yet they wonder
why God doesn’t bless them.
Slothfulness, laziness, complacency, coldness, disinterest,
and half-hearted service is the NORM.
IV. Execution
Paul’s sports analogy to a marathon runner and a boxer
·
I Cor. 9:
24 Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth
the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.
And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things.
Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so
fight I, not as one that beateth the air:
Unfortunately, the
church is many times lacking a strategy or a game plan.
Independent Baptist are notorious for flying by the seat of
their pants – no plan, no execution, no strategy.
Their favorite line is, “We’re just waitin’ on God”. They
look like Rip Van Winkle covered in spider webs!
The Great Commission will work, if people put it into
practice!
Tithing works, if people practice it!
The local church is a beautiful thing to behold if everybody
is sticking to the game plan!
·
Illustration:
Imagine a football offensive line if
everybody run their own play every time!
Those that are members do not know their function in the
body.
They don’t realize their importance and their significance
V. Endurance
I am amazed at the world’s ability to take a beating and
keep on going!
They can take a chewing out from their boss, and still love
their job.
They can take a blessing out from their coach, and still
love the game.
But you have to deal with church members with kid gloves
because they are apt to quit at a moment’s notice!
I’ve seen football players beg to be put back in the game,
and they are bleeding and limping.
I don’t envy the world, but they have some things I wish we
had – endurance!!
·
2
Thessalonians 1:4 So that we ourselves glory in you in the
churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and
tribulations that ye endure:
·
2 Timothy
2:3 Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.
·
2 Timothy
2:10 Therefore I endure all things for the elect’s sakes, that they may also
obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.
