SEVEN SECRETS OF SPIRITUAL SUCCESS

#1 · June 25, 2008, 10:32 am

Quote from Forum Archives on June 25, 2008, 10:32 am
Posted by: bhfbc <bhfbc@...>
SEVEN SECRETS OF SPIRITUAL SUCCESS

June 22, 2008

TEXT: Luke 5:1-11

There was an article in one of last weeks Peru Tribune about one of Maconaquahs recently retired teachers, Nancy Smith. In the article, she briefly recapped her teaching career and talked about some of the things she is doing and plans to do in her retirement. What caught my attention is that one of the things she may do is teaching offenders at the Miami Correctional Facility about the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.

What caught my attention a little more than it normally would have is the topic that she has for a course of instruction: Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. It just so happens that I had run across last week an article with a similar title: Seven Secrets of Spiritual Success. I thought that was interesting. Lists of seven must be popular.

Certainly, one of the things people need to learn is how to be effective and successful. That doesnt necessarily mean how to rise to be the CEO of a company or something. Some people need to learn how to be effective parents or community volunteers or church members. Some people just need to learn how to increase their living skills. Having seen the challenges facing a couple of the men released from prison, I am aware of how much they need to learn real fast in order to just succeed at integrating back into society.

My object of success this morning, however, is not released prisoners or people needing to learn living skills or even anyone striving to be that CEO of a corporation. The object of my topic is the Christian. Of all the people in the world, Christians should want to succeed. Of all the people in the world, Christians have an inside track on what it takes to succeed. What makes us different than the subjects in all those other seminars are our definition of success and our strategies to get there. This morning, we can take a lesson from a tired and weary group of fishermen who felt like failures until Jesus taught them a lesson - a lesson that sustained them the rest of their lives.

Lets look at the first secret of spiritual success: Accept the limitations of human efforts and plans. In the fifth chapter, Luke begins detailing the calling of the first disciples. It was at the shore of the Sea of Galilee that Jesus saw two of the fishing boats. They belonged to Peter and his partners, James and John. In spite of all their experience and skill as fishermen, the night of fishing had turned up nothing. They did all they knew to do and had come up empty.

God has given us tremendous abilities to do a lot of things for ourselves. We live in a world, or a part of the world, that is so much different than that experienced by past generations. I know a fair number of folks who have had laser treatments and eye surgeries, and I will be joining them at the end of this week. Think about it! A laser beam controlled, but still a laser beam being shot into my eye. Who would have thought this possible four or five generations ago? Yet, today it is done as a commonplace event. In fact, some people have laser treatments done as elective, not necessary, surgery. God has given us tremendous abilities to do a lot for ourselves.

Even then, though, we do not always have enough cleverness on our own to do the job. I am very well aware that there is a chance, considered small, that my treatment will not take care of the problem. Not everything works. Peter and the others knew how to fish. They had done it many times. But this time, even though they fished all night long, they did not have a catch. In order to have spiritual success, we must accept the limitations of human efforts and plans.

The second secret of spiritual success is to trust the word of Jesus even if it doesnt make sense. When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch. Simon answered, Master, weve worked hard all night and havent caught anything. Think about this for a bit. Here were three fishermen who knew what they were doing. They had the tools and the talent to catch fish. Any fishermen or women here? Know anyone who is not a fisherman? Think of that person, and then imagine how you feel when he or she tells you how to fish. Annoying, isnt it? What does he know? He doesnt go fishing.

Peter had a carpenter in his boat. Peter wasnt trying to tell Jesus how to build a cabinet, but here was Jesus telling Peter to put out for deeper water, drop the nets, and get a catch. Just think of all the ways that Peter could have responded.

Fortunately for him and his partners, though Peter trusted Jesus. Master, weve worked hard all night and havent caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets. There was something in Jesus that caused Peter to trust him. It wasnt a complicated or difficult request, but it was a request that did not seem to make sense that moment. Trust the word of Jesus even if it doesnt make sense.

Be willing to take risks. This is the third secret of spiritual success. It is inherent in many things that we do in life. Last Sunday, we celebrated Fathers Day. Last month, we celebrated Mothers Day. There is risk involved in becoming a father and mother. There is risk involved being a child. Jesus told Peter to go out into the deep water. They both knew that there was not going to be a catch near the shore.

Most of us have heard sometime how a bird learns to fly. When the time is right, the little bird is forced to the edge of the nest and then nudged right over the edge. Its time to fly or hit the ground. Of course, all this is done by instinct, but there could be some innate sense of fear for its life as the little bird discovers gravity. The parent bird knows, though, that without taking this risk, the little bird will not fly.

Jesus calls us to take risks, too. Spiritual risk-taking is not for the purpose of taking unnecessary risks for the thrill of it. It is so that we learn faith and trust in God. Later in their time together, Peter requested, Lord, if its you, tell me to come to you on the water. Jesus said, Come. (Matthew 14:28-29) Jesus was delighted for Peter to take a risk. In particular, this risk taught Peter and the others a great deal about faith. Every great enterprise takes some risk. Our spiritual success is no exception. Be willing to take risks.

Not every risk we take turns out as we imagine it. After successfully stepping out onto the water and walking to Jesus, Peter became distracted by the storm and began to sink. When risk does not work out like we imagine, remember secret number one: Accept the limitations of human efforts and plans. And, think of secret number four: Persevere even through disappointment and fatigue.

Everyone becomes tired and discouraged. We all go through periods of depression, whether short or long. Luke does not say so, but the fishermen were tired. They fished all night. That was their routine, apparently. They had the graveyard shift, so to speak. We call it the mid-watch in the Navy. They fished at night, did their net and boat maintenance in the morning, tried to catch some sleep, and then got up to do it all over again. So, I think that the fishermen were tired. But, when it came down to it, they were willing to persevere through disappointment and fatigue.

There are many reasons why we don't persevere, and some of them are valid. Sometimes we face "Heartbreak Hill." In the Boston Marathon, there is a legendary obstacle called Heartbreak Hill. Starting at mile thirteen of the Boston race course, there are a number of hills, climaxing at mile nineteen with Heartbreak Hill. It's the longest, steepest hill in the race. What makes this hill even worse is that world-class runners "hit the wall" around mile eighteen or nineteen. That is, their bodies have depleted the glycogen stored in the muscles. The glycogen has been replaced with lactic acid, which makes them feel achy and sore and deprived of oxygen. When runners hit the wall, they feel like they cannot go on. Heartbreak Hill tests runners to the very core of their determination and their strength.

There are Heartbreak Hills in life. Life is not on a level grade. We have problems. We have bigger problems. And at times we face Heartbreak Hill. (Craig Brian Larson, "Strong to the Finish," Preaching Today, Tape No. 155) Jesus knows this. Yet, he calls us to persevere. He prepares us to persevere. Not one of us can say that we have ever gone through what Jesus went through. That does not mean that our suffering is not real, but we cannot use our suffering as an excuse to not persevere. The fishermen were tired, but they were willing to do their part to accomplish what Jesus wanted them to do. The fishermen were discouraged, but they were willing to try again when Jesus pointed the way. Spiritual success requires perseverance even through disappointment and fatigue.

The fifth secret of spiritual success is to remember the importance of teamwork. When success came, in the form of a catch of fish in this instance, the fishermen had to share the burden. When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink. It took more than one fishing crew to get this catch to shore.

Spiritual success is the same way. No one person can run everything in even one church, much less the entire Kingdom of God. Remember what happened to Moses after the exodus from Egypt? Well, a lot of things happened, but one of them was that Moses became overburdened as Israels judge. Exodus 18 describes the encounter between Moses and his father-in-law, Jethro. After watching Moses spend a day as judge, Jethro said to Moses, What you are doing is not good. You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone. Listen now to me and I will give you some advice, and may God be with you. You must be the peoples representative before God and bring their disputes to him. Teach them the decrees and the laws, and show them the way to live and the duties they are to perform. But select capable men from all the people men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share it with you. If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied. (Exodus 18:17-23) Sharing the load. Teamwork. It works. It is a secret of spiritual success.

Spiritual success secret number six: Remember that God can give us more than we ask or imagine. That is rather obvious in this passage. Peter and his partners were faithful enough to cast off for the deep water and let down their nets at Jesus request, but I wonder how certain they were of catching anything at all. Master, weve worked hard all night and havent caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets. If they could not catch any fish during the prime fishing time, how would they catch any at another time?

We know the joyful result: When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. Now theres a catch of fish! They would have been amazed and happy if Jesus had sent them about half a nets catch. After all, that was more than they had before. But that was not what God had in mind for them. He sent them so many fish that two boats struggled to handle them all. Our God delights in surprising us. Remember that God can give us more than we ask or imagine.

One of the operative words Im using this morning is success. Most people like to achieve some type of success. We find it rewarding. A problem with success is that once we achieve it, we can become proud. Christians need to remember that the other operative word is spiritual. That means that we want to be submissive to God. So the seventh secret of spiritual success is to be humble. Peter just experienced a great success as a fisherman. He could have gotten back to shore and run up and down the beach among the other fishermen and brag about all the ones that did not get away. Yeah, look at me! You didnt get a catch? Aww, too bad. If you were even half the fisherman I was, youd have gotten something. Look at my catch! We couldnt even haul it in with one net. Maybe you guys ought to start posting your resumes on monster.com. I dont think youve got what it takes to be fishermen.

We know people like that, and theyre not all outside the church. But spiritual success does not come from taking credit for what God has provided. This is one instance were Peter got it right. He did not take credit for this success. In fact, he humbled himself before God and came face to face with His own unworthiness. Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man! For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simons partners. Want spiritual success? Be humble.

There we have it: seven secrets of spiritual success. Now its not so much a secret. But it does require practice and review. After Jesus resurrection, Peter, probably still shaken by the events he had just been through, went back to fishing. Peter probably had nagging feelings about how he had failed Jesus. But Jesus came to him again and did a similar miracle. John 21:4-6, Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize it was Jesus. He called out to them, Friends, havent you any fish? No, they answered. He said, Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some. When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.

Well, Peter never forgot the lesson. He went from that place to become an even greater fisherman a fisher of men. He became a spiritual success, and so can we. We know the secrets. Then Jesus said to Simon, Dont be afraid; from now on you will catch men. So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.

Rev. Charles A. Layne

First Baptist Church

PO Box 515

179 W. Broadway

Bunker Hill, IN 46914

765-689-7987

bhfbc@bhfirstbaptist.com

www.bhfirstbaptist.com
-- To unsubscribe, send ANY message to: abesermons-unsubscribe@welovegod.org   

Posted by: bhfbc <bhfbc@...>

June 22, 2008

TEXT: Luke 5:1-11

There was an article in one of last weeks Peru Tribune about one of Maconaquahs recently retired teachers, Nancy Smith. In the article, she briefly recapped her teaching career and talked about some of the things she is doing and plans to do in her retirement. What caught my attention is that one of the things she may do is teaching offenders at the Miami Correctional Facility about the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.

What caught my attention a little more than it normally would have is the topic that she has for a course of instruction: Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. It just so happens that I had run across last week an article with a similar title: Seven Secrets of Spiritual Success. I thought that was interesting. Lists of seven must be popular.

Certainly, one of the things people need to learn is how to be effective and successful. That doesnt necessarily mean how to rise to be the CEO of a company or something. Some people need to learn how to be effective parents or community volunteers or church members. Some people just need to learn how to increase their living skills. Having seen the challenges facing a couple of the men released from prison, I am aware of how much they need to learn real fast in order to just succeed at integrating back into society.

My object of success this morning, however, is not released prisoners or people needing to learn living skills or even anyone striving to be that CEO of a corporation. The object of my topic is the Christian. Of all the people in the world, Christians should want to succeed. Of all the people in the world, Christians have an inside track on what it takes to succeed. What makes us different than the subjects in all those other seminars are our definition of success and our strategies to get there. This morning, we can take a lesson from a tired and weary group of fishermen who felt like failures until Jesus taught them a lesson - a lesson that sustained them the rest of their lives.

Lets look at the first secret of spiritual success: Accept the limitations of human efforts and plans. In the fifth chapter, Luke begins detailing the calling of the first disciples. It was at the shore of the Sea of Galilee that Jesus saw two of the fishing boats. They belonged to Peter and his partners, James and John. In spite of all their experience and skill as fishermen, the night of fishing had turned up nothing. They did all they knew to do and had come up empty.

God has given us tremendous abilities to do a lot of things for ourselves. We live in a world, or a part of the world, that is so much different than that experienced by past generations. I know a fair number of folks who have had laser treatments and eye surgeries, and I will be joining them at the end of this week. Think about it! A laser beam controlled, but still a laser beam being shot into my eye. Who would have thought this possible four or five generations ago? Yet, today it is done as a commonplace event. In fact, some people have laser treatments done as elective, not necessary, surgery. God has given us tremendous abilities to do a lot for ourselves.

Even then, though, we do not always have enough cleverness on our own to do the job. I am very well aware that there is a chance, considered small, that my treatment will not take care of the problem. Not everything works. Peter and the others knew how to fish. They had done it many times. But this time, even though they fished all night long, they did not have a catch. In order to have spiritual success, we must accept the limitations of human efforts and plans.

The second secret of spiritual success is to trust the word of Jesus even if it doesnt make sense. When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch. Simon answered, Master, weve worked hard all night and havent caught anything. Think about this for a bit. Here were three fishermen who knew what they were doing. They had the tools and the talent to catch fish. Any fishermen or women here? Know anyone who is not a fisherman? Think of that person, and then imagine how you feel when he or she tells you how to fish. Annoying, isnt it? What does he know? He doesnt go fishing.

Peter had a carpenter in his boat. Peter wasnt trying to tell Jesus how to build a cabinet, but here was Jesus telling Peter to put out for deeper water, drop the nets, and get a catch. Just think of all the ways that Peter could have responded.

Fortunately for him and his partners, though Peter trusted Jesus. Master, weve worked hard all night and havent caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets. There was something in Jesus that caused Peter to trust him. It wasnt a complicated or difficult request, but it was a request that did not seem to make sense that moment. Trust the word of Jesus even if it doesnt make sense.

Be willing to take risks. This is the third secret of spiritual success. It is inherent in many things that we do in life. Last Sunday, we celebrated Fathers Day. Last month, we celebrated Mothers Day. There is risk involved in becoming a father and mother. There is risk involved being a child. Jesus told Peter to go out into the deep water. They both knew that there was not going to be a catch near the shore.

Most of us have heard sometime how a bird learns to fly. When the time is right, the little bird is forced to the edge of the nest and then nudged right over the edge. Its time to fly or hit the ground. Of course, all this is done by instinct, but there could be some innate sense of fear for its life as the little bird discovers gravity. The parent bird knows, though, that without taking this risk, the little bird will not fly.

Jesus calls us to take risks, too. Spiritual risk-taking is not for the purpose of taking unnecessary risks for the thrill of it. It is so that we learn faith and trust in God. Later in their time together, Peter requested, Lord, if its you, tell me to come to you on the water. Jesus said, Come. (Matthew 14:28-29) Jesus was delighted for Peter to take a risk. In particular, this risk taught Peter and the others a great deal about faith. Every great enterprise takes some risk. Our spiritual success is no exception. Be willing to take risks.

Not every risk we take turns out as we imagine it. After successfully stepping out onto the water and walking to Jesus, Peter became distracted by the storm and began to sink. When risk does not work out like we imagine, remember secret number one: Accept the limitations of human efforts and plans. And, think of secret number four: Persevere even through disappointment and fatigue.

Everyone becomes tired and discouraged. We all go through periods of depression, whether short or long. Luke does not say so, but the fishermen were tired. They fished all night. That was their routine, apparently. They had the graveyard shift, so to speak. We call it the mid-watch in the Navy. They fished at night, did their net and boat maintenance in the morning, tried to catch some sleep, and then got up to do it all over again. So, I think that the fishermen were tired. But, when it came down to it, they were willing to persevere through disappointment and fatigue.

There are many reasons why we don't persevere, and some of them are valid. Sometimes we face "Heartbreak Hill." In the Boston Marathon, there is a legendary obstacle called Heartbreak Hill. Starting at mile thirteen of the Boston race course, there are a number of hills, climaxing at mile nineteen with Heartbreak Hill. It's the longest, steepest hill in the race. What makes this hill even worse is that world-class runners "hit the wall" around mile eighteen or nineteen. That is, their bodies have depleted the glycogen stored in the muscles. The glycogen has been replaced with lactic acid, which makes them feel achy and sore and deprived of oxygen. When runners hit the wall, they feel like they cannot go on. Heartbreak Hill tests runners to the very core of their determination and their strength.

There are Heartbreak Hills in life. Life is not on a level grade. We have problems. We have bigger problems. And at times we face Heartbreak Hill. (Craig Brian Larson, "Strong to the Finish," Preaching Today, Tape No. 155) Jesus knows this. Yet, he calls us to persevere. He prepares us to persevere. Not one of us can say that we have ever gone through what Jesus went through. That does not mean that our suffering is not real, but we cannot use our suffering as an excuse to not persevere. The fishermen were tired, but they were willing to do their part to accomplish what Jesus wanted them to do. The fishermen were discouraged, but they were willing to try again when Jesus pointed the way. Spiritual success requires perseverance even through disappointment and fatigue.

The fifth secret of spiritual success is to remember the importance of teamwork. When success came, in the form of a catch of fish in this instance, the fishermen had to share the burden. When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink. It took more than one fishing crew to get this catch to shore.

Spiritual success is the same way. No one person can run everything in even one church, much less the entire Kingdom of God. Remember what happened to Moses after the exodus from Egypt? Well, a lot of things happened, but one of them was that Moses became overburdened as Israels judge. Exodus 18 describes the encounter between Moses and his father-in-law, Jethro. After watching Moses spend a day as judge, Jethro said to Moses, What you are doing is not good. You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone. Listen now to me and I will give you some advice, and may God be with you. You must be the peoples representative before God and bring their disputes to him. Teach them the decrees and the laws, and show them the way to live and the duties they are to perform. But select capable men from all the people men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share it with you. If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied. (Exodus 18:17-23) Sharing the load. Teamwork. It works. It is a secret of spiritual success.

Spiritual success secret number six: Remember that God can give us more than we ask or imagine. That is rather obvious in this passage. Peter and his partners were faithful enough to cast off for the deep water and let down their nets at Jesus request, but I wonder how certain they were of catching anything at all. Master, weve worked hard all night and havent caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets. If they could not catch any fish during the prime fishing time, how would they catch any at another time?

We know the joyful result: When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. Now theres a catch of fish! They would have been amazed and happy if Jesus had sent them about half a nets catch. After all, that was more than they had before. But that was not what God had in mind for them. He sent them so many fish that two boats struggled to handle them all. Our God delights in surprising us. Remember that God can give us more than we ask or imagine.

One of the operative words Im using this morning is success. Most people like to achieve some type of success. We find it rewarding. A problem with success is that once we achieve it, we can become proud. Christians need to remember that the other operative word is spiritual. That means that we want to be submissive to God. So the seventh secret of spiritual success is to be humble. Peter just experienced a great success as a fisherman. He could have gotten back to shore and run up and down the beach among the other fishermen and brag about all the ones that did not get away. Yeah, look at me! You didnt get a catch? Aww, too bad. If you were even half the fisherman I was, youd have gotten something. Look at my catch! We couldnt even haul it in with one net. Maybe you guys ought to start posting your resumes on monster.com. I dont think youve got what it takes to be fishermen.

We know people like that, and theyre not all outside the church. But spiritual success does not come from taking credit for what God has provided. This is one instance were Peter got it right. He did not take credit for this success. In fact, he humbled himself before God and came face to face with His own unworthiness. Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man! For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simons partners. Want spiritual success? Be humble.

There we have it: seven secrets of spiritual success. Now its not so much a secret. But it does require practice and review. After Jesus resurrection, Peter, probably still shaken by the events he had just been through, went back to fishing. Peter probably had nagging feelings about how he had failed Jesus. But Jesus came to him again and did a similar miracle. John 21:4-6, Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize it was Jesus. He called out to them, Friends, havent you any fish? No, they answered. He said, Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some. When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.

Well, Peter never forgot the lesson. He went from that place to become an even greater fisherman a fisher of men. He became a spiritual success, and so can we. We know the secrets. Then Jesus said to Simon, Dont be afraid; from now on you will catch men. So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.

Rev. Charles A. Layne

First Baptist Church

PO Box 515

179 W. Broadway

Bunker Hill, IN 46914

765-689-7987

bhfbc@bhfirstbaptist.com

http://www.bhfirstbaptist.com

-- To unsubscribe, send ANY message to: abesermons-unsubscribe@welovegod.org