WOULD GOD SEND SOMEONE TO HELL?

Psalm 95:7-11 refers to an incident in Exodus 15.  The children of Israel had just crossed through the Sea of Reeds!  They travelled into the widlerness, going for three days without finding a fresh water source. 

They came to a place named Marah.  There was a spring there, but the water was bitter.  They complained.

God directed Moses to cut a tree and throw it into the water.  The water became sweet!  As they drank, God made a regulation:    (Exodus 15:26  NASB)

If you will give earnest heed to the voice of the LORD your God, and do what is right in His sight, and give ear to His commandments, and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have put on the Egyptians;  for I, the LORD, am your healer.

Most of us know that the children of Israel repeated their complaining frequently after this incident!  They had a reputation for being grumblers and rebellious against God!  When God was ready to give them the Promised Land, they balked! 

In response to their rebellion, God let them wander in the wilderness for forty years until that generation of adults all died.  Then, God led their children into the Promised Land!

 The Psalm-writer recounts this as he speaks to his own generation:  [Psalm 95:7c-11  NASB]

Today, if you would hear His voice, do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah, as in the days of Massah in the wilderness, when your fathers tested Me, they tried Me, though they had seen My work.

For forty years I loathed that generation, and said they are a people who err in their heart, and they do not know My ways.  Therefore, I swore in My anger, truly they shall not enter into My rest.

THE POINT
God is full of grace and mercy.  However, if we continue in our obstinance and rebellion, God will judge us!  And He will condemn us. 

Many people find it difficult to believe that a loving God would condemn someone to Hell.  This passage reminds us that He will! 

If we harden our hearts against God, we earn His anger.  God expects to be able to direct our lives.  God wants us to be soft in His hands.  When we are, He will be our healer.  When we aren't, He will keep calling us and working with us;  but ultimately if we fail to respond, He will judge us justly!

IS YOUR CHURCH WILLING TO KICK YOU OUT?

I read a book by Joshua Harris last night, Why Church Matters.

In chapter five, he lists the ten things that matter most in choosing a church. 
Number nine is:  "Is this a church that is willing to kick me out?"  (pp.83-84)

When a person who claims to be a Christian lives in a way that blatantly contradicts all that it means to be a disciple of Christ, a faithful church's responsibility is to begin the process of removing that person from membership and to treat him or her like an unbeliever in the hope that he or she will repent and ultimately be restored (see I Corinthians 5;  II Corinthians 2). 

This practice is called church discipline and was instituted by Jesus (see Matthew 18). 

Why should you be excited about the potential of being expelled from a church?  I gain a wonderful sense of protection in knowing that if I committed a scandalous sin and showed no repentance, my church wouldn't put up with it.  They would plead with me to change.  They would patiently confront me with God's Word.  And eventually, if I refused to change, they would lovingly kick me out.

Radical, huh?

As a pastor, I've repeatedly been involved in this kind of activity.  It's always hard - never fun.  You're always accused of being judgmental - even though the actions you've taken are out of love for the person. 

The issue is:  Does a church care - or not? 

If a church (which is the people, remember, not a building or its leaders) genuinely cares, then the people will:

• pray for the person who wanders from God's ways,
• find ways to speak the truth in love to them (Ephesians 4:15),
• use God's Word to teach, reprove, correct, and train in righteousness (II Timothy 3:16), and
• not coddle, ignore, condone, or accept willfully sinful behavior!

Is your church willing to kick you out?

GOING TO THE PARK

For the last few days I've been spending a lot of time with my grandchildren:  Rylie (4) and Coltin (2 1/2). 

In spite of being in Connecticut for Thanksgiving, the weather has been remarkably warm.  So, every day, we've been able to walk to the park!  It's their favorite thing to do!

We wait for the cars to go by and then race across the street.  We have to hold hands until we get to the park because cars and trucks are dangerously close to the sidewalk!  Rylie (with help) likes to walk on the guard rail along the way!

Once we get to the park, we can run and play.  We climb all over the playground:

• going down the slides
• sliding down the fireman's pole
• walking on the balance beam
• climbing the steps, and
• riding the glider.

Then we go to the river and throw stones and sticks in.  We have to be very careful not to fall in!

We run and play in the field.  We even play with other children who join us at the playground!

We met some wonderful people the other day.  They followed us everywhere we went!  We couldn't shake them!  We waved - and they waved back.  We jumped - and they jumped, too!  We ran - and they ran with us!  Shadow people are a lot of fun!

Then, after a long time, we walk back home - because we're thirsty!

It's a wonderful time for Rylie, Coltin, Grammy and Poppy! 

Once home, we go into the backyard and jump on the bounce-a-line!  Uncle Troy is especially a lot of fun on the bounce-a-line!  But he has to have another adult there to keep the children safe (he gets carried away)! 

Going to the park is such simple fun!  It doesn't cost anything.  It's pretty safe.  It's nearby.  Yet, wonderful memories are made there!  Everyone should go the park occasionally!  It's better than television or video games or even playing with PlayDough! 

Try it the next time there's a nice day!  You'll like it!  Especially if you take your grandchilren with you!

GRATITUDE

A lack of gratitude is a terrible thing.  Good parents work with their children early to teach them to say "Thank-you."  I'm always amused when you give a child a piece of candy and the mother says to the child, "What do you say?"  After several promptings, the child says, "I'm sorry!"

A lack of gratitude leads to an attitude of entitlement.  And if left long enough, it turns into bitterness and anger.

Gratitude is so important!

One Christmas, a parent decreed that she was no longer going to remind her children of their thank-you note duties.  As a result, their grandmother never received acknowledgements for the generous checks she had given.

The next year things were different, however.  "The children came over in person to thank me," the Grandma told a friend triumphantly.

 "How wonderful!" the friend exclaimed.  What do you think caused the change in behavior?"

"Oh, that's easy," the Grandmother replied.  "This year I didn't sign the checks."

We all appreciate gratitude when it's expressed to us.  Don't you imagine that God also appreciates a thankful heart?

I spoke with a friend this week and asked him if he was having a good day.  He told me that every day he wakes up and can move his hands is a good day!  Do you feel that way?  Do you regularly give thanks to God for the blessings and protection that He's given you?

I send out thank-you notes.  I want people to know how much I appreciate their contributions to what we do at Free Methodist Community Church.  I am often thanked for these notes.  To be honest, I receive a lot of thank-you notes too.  They encourage me.  I keep them and look over them from time-to-time.

Have you noticed that when people are truly grateful it makes you want to do even more for them?

Wouldn't it be great if you could develop a discipline of giving thanks to God?

My childhood, bedtime prayer:

Now I lay me down to sleep.  I pray the Lord my soul to keep.  God bless Mommy, Daddy, Grandma, Jeannette and Lib, Tommy and Bobby, Beverly and Ira and everybody in the world.  Help Harold be a good boy.  Amen.

My prayers are longer and more thorough now,  and hopefully more meaningful. 

How about yours?  Does God know how grateful you are for all the blessings He's poured into your life?  Do we really need a national holiday to remind us to give thanks to God?  Don't you think He might like to hear it regularly?

The scripture says:  Give thanks to the Lord for He is good - His love endures forever!

THE SECOND AND THIRD AMERICAN THANKSGIVINGS

The Pilgrims didn't have an official Thanksgiving in 1622.  Thanksgiving was not a ritual for them.  It was not a date on a calendar to be observed.  For whatever reasons, they simply did not officially give thanks in 1622.

However, in 1623, they experienced a terrible drought.  The summer came and passed with no relief.  Governor William Bradford's diary reports that no rain fell between the third week of May and late July.  It was unbelievably hot!  Everything nearly dried up and died.  In response to this crisis they had a gathering to call on God's mercy.  It was a day of fasting and prayer in which they humbled themselves before Almighty God. 

Read Bradley's report:  (made contemporary)

...all morning, and the greatest part of that day, it was clear weather and very hot - not a cloud or any sign of rain to be seen.  Yet toward evening it began to become overcast.  Shortly after that it began to rain.  It rained with such sweet and gentle showers that they immediately rejoiced and blessed God.  The rains came without wind or thunder;  with no violence at all, and yet with great abundance so that the earth was thoroughly wet and soaked.  It revived the decayed corn and other fruits.  It was so wonderful to see, that it made even the Indians marvel.  After this, the Lord sent them consistent, seasonable showers, with interchange of fair, warm weather, so through His blessing, they enjoyed a fruitful and liberal harvest.  There was great comfort and rejoicing.  So much so that they set apart another day of thanksgiving and rejoicing. 

HAL'S NOTE:
It's interesting that they were thankful because there had been a hardship and because they had put their trust in God and because God had clearly answered their prayers and provided for their needs. 

Notice, the previous year had been a normal year, and they did not have a Thanksgiving that year.  But when hardship came, when drought came, when they were forced to depend on God, they became thankful!

Are you thankful to God even when times have been tough?

A Thanksgiving Poem for those who ate too much!

Artwork by Rylie Grace Kerstetter  
[Hal's granddaughter!  :-)

FIRST AMERICAN THANKSGIVING

At the turn of the 16th century there was a lot of unrest in England.  A group of believers emerged who felt the need to leave the influence of the Church of England.  This group, much later, became known as Pilgrims.  In 1607, they fled to Holland because their lives were being threatened in England.  From there - in 1620 - they boarded a ship called the Mayflower and set sail for the new lands across the ocean.  Their primary objective was to find a place where they could live and worship in freedom and without persecution.

The Mayflower was an old boat that was about 100 feet long.  It was quite crowded with 102 passengers (plus crew).  We know the names of all these passengers!  The journey was hard with many storms.  At one point, a main beam broke and had to be repaired with a giant screw.  After 66 days, they sighted Cape Cod and realized that they had missed Virginia where they had permission to settle.  But with food and water supplies low, they could go no further.

Since they were on land that had not been chartered to them, they all signed the Mayflower Compact which basically stated that they would all stay together and cooperate for common survival.  When they were able, they petitioned for a new charter for the land of Plymouth;  this charter was granted in 1621.

In December of 1620, a group went ashore to explore.  They found the land of Plymouth to be suitable for living.  However, the winter was harsh and they were unprepared for it.  Many became sick.  By spring, half had died!  The Mayflower returned to England, but all of its passengers stayed in the new land.  In April, Samoset, a Native American who spoke English walked into the sttlement and said, "Welcome!"

The Wampnoag people had lived in this area for hundreds of years.  They were acquainted with English explorers who had come to fish and hunt.  One of their strongest leaders was Massasoit, who lived 40 miles southwest of the Pilgrims in Rhode Island.  These tribes had suffered from new diseases that took the lives of many of their people!  Because of this, Massasoit was interested in forming alliances wherever he could.

In the early fall of 1621, the 53 surviving Pilgrims celebrated the first Thanksgiving in response to the harvest.  The 53 included:

• 4 married women
• 5 teenage girls
• 9 teenage boys
• 13 young children
• 22 adult men

Another ship arrived after this celebration, bringing more people to be part of the settlement.

King Massasoit attended the Thanksgiving along with 90 of his men.

The menu for that first Thanksgiving included:

• cod, bass, and other fish
• wild ducks and geese
• turkey
• lobster
• watercress
• berries
• dried fruit
• boiled pumpkin
• clams
• plums, and
• venison (Massasoit's men went out and killed 9 deer for the feast).

LESSON TO BE LEARNED
They thanked God even though they had experienced terrible hardship and great loss!  49 of their family and friends had died during that first hard winter!  They had said a final good-bye to mothers, fathers, friends, and children!  Yet, amazingly, when the Mayflower departed for England - no one left!  Their shelters were makeshift.  The Native Americans were friendly.  The game was bountiful.  The sea held food resources for them.  The gound was capable of bearing fruit.  But, most important, they had freedom!  They could worship God and express themselves to Him without interference from outside authorities!

FROM HAL
Enjoy your Thanksgiving!  Whether you've been blessed with much or with adversity, you can always find reasons to give thanks to God!