Do we submit ourselves completely?


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Sermon Notes

Larry_Achen_smlSo its good to know some people know how to use the DVR. I remember there was a cartoon show called The Simpsons and there was one episode that the comes to mind mapping of the Sunday there was it was a is Super Bowl Sunday and March finally convinces that she should drag Homer along to church service on Sunday and he really didn’t want to go you wanted the watch the game finally somehow because of Martha’s influence became the church and when he came to church it was his family and one other person in the church and so module saying see their others and so the pastor comes up and says it’s good to see you all here on Super Bowl Sunday and the one person stood on Super Bowl Sunday they ran up the threads it’s good this even very is a you today our God bless you all today’s passage is taken from Romans chapter 12 verses 1 to 2 Romans chapter 12 verses one to to the lectionary talks about Christ going into the Temple being presented in the Temple and before we begin our epistle passage I just want to go back to the this Luke’s Gospel just very briefly I mentioned one or two things in Luke’s gospel chapter 2 verses 22 in English it says when the time came for their purification so that data is plural in the Greek it’s the same way in the Greek it says when it came time for they had committed purification in the Greek is plural and in our English translation is plural plural unfortunately in my on translations they translated it as way came time for our purification there is a a a tradition of old law more than a tradition in the Old Testament that speaks about women needing to purify themselves after childbirth but I think it’s very interesting that Luke the doctor looked the doctor when he narrates this he doesn’t press that point instead he says I came time for their purification understanding that everyone needs purification and then he focuses on the presentation of Christ in the Temple the focus of this tradition of this passage is on bringing Jesus Christ to the church a it’s it’s sad and it’s unfortunate that we have adopted only one view of that and take it to mean that it’s only talking about the woman and her purification in a way that the basis for why the Martin the church as a service before the baptism if you listen very carefully for the baptismal service that’s done before sorry the service is done before the baptism which is called stop the product (so the part that’s praise prayer that given for the healthy birth in they are are and it hints of this idea is still present today of in uncleanness that exists and so we’re asking that God remove this uncleanliness it’s it’s time that we very critically look at what we’re say I don’t know if anyone’s ever noticed it but whenever we’ve taken that portion of the service had not said those words and there was one time when during Jaden’s baptism I asked if said she and him the would both come forward for the prayer and they both agreed to the both came forward for that prayer and according to our church tradition it’s it’s all it’s usually been the the woman comes forward and we pray for her purification and we thank God for the healthy childbirth what I’m asking you all to think more clearly through these things if Saint Luke being a doctor could figure out that the importance of this event was bringing Christ to the Temple why are we still why are we still stuck in the past as is leave that to you whenever you see fit many good asking yourselves why we do this in the I and I encourage you to to be critical of our church I love our church I love our church more than all of any of the church I would never leave this church unless for some reason the the the higher-ups just decided to blasphemy that I wish I don’t see ever happening so I I’m staying in this church until I die with because of my love for the church I’m also very critical of our church I want our church to be in line with the Bible rather than in-line with our understanding of traditions are always secondary to the Bible this is there even in our Constitution we take all of our doctrines from Scripture then from the liturgy than from tradition I just wanted to mention that to you all we do not we do not have that concept today if you give birth to a child you are very much welcome to come to church the very next Sunday is absolutely no reason to stay away and there is no concept that prevents women from being in the mother the hot there is no concept of uncleanliness that prevents her from being in the month that’s all I’ll say on that issue shall we now focus our attention on Romans chapter 12 verses one and two when we know that the gospel passage focuses on Jesus’s presentation into the Temple how are we to present ourselves to God is the question so it’s very easy to understand what Jesus’s parents were doing in that context and in that culture they had a certain kind of a tradition that they followed which made sense for them and what do we do yes we bring our children to the Temple but more than that how do we present ourselves to God in this passage Paul says I appeal to you therefore whenever you see therefore whenever you read the the the Scripture look very carefully for certain words words like therefore or but’s these or yet is all words that should signal something to trigger something in your mind when we read that this Paul says I appeal to you therefore therefore means what is about to say is based on something else so he’s discussed something for quite some time and now he same the practical implications of what I just talked about means this what I do a big study on the thread is no time rebbe Romans chapter 128 is more theological Romans chapter 8 Romans chapter 9 1011 talked about how it is that this theology fits in with the reality that Israel seems to be not where it should be how it seems to follow the way so Paul addresses that and then now he says therefore so based on this concept of sin that I’ve mentioned to based on this concept of Christ coming in justifying you based on this concept that God has now past due to sanctify yourselves therefore now I appeal to you I urge you in the Greek is very close to I beg you present to you ourselves your bodies as living sacrifices holy and acceptable to God which is your spiritual worship know when we think of spiritual worship we need to break down some of these strange notions that we may have him in the or the there was and is an and he we call Gloria and gland is very passionate when she worships the reason she has that name is every every Wednesday prayer one Wednesday morning ladies prayer shall be then and when the prayer parties going on nonstop she say go to a you a you so that we gave her this she has problems with their neighbors she cannot get along with her neighbors if my memory serves me right she was the one who is very abusive to her daughter-in-law know what is this concept of spirituality that we have; we see that will thing while what spirituality to say Gloria Willard Lewis so many times so loudly that such a wonderful thing is it not what I think this passage conveys to us is a different understanding of sin. She will worship ritual worship involves presenting our bodies to him there was another interesting spiritual experience that Jesus had with his closest disciples James and John and Peter when they were on this mountain there was this beautiful experience that happened we call it the Transfiguration so Jesus says clothes began to dazzle bright light was shining so brightly was difficult this data brighter than any white imaginable and then suddenly these disciples see there is these great figures of faith for now before them and so they Peter said something that sounds very levelheaded it’s wonderful that we are here let’s build the reason Tabernacles let’s make 310s one for you one for Moses and the is an endless day here because this is a beautiful spiritual experience and Jesus is a response to that was now let’s go back down we that we had enough time him and him let’s go back to and when he goes back down the very next thing that he does is he encounters a boy with seizures and he heals the sport that what I would argue is that spiritual worship spiritual worship definitely is not devoid of quiet time with God is not devoid of ecstatic experiences I’m not saying that but I am saying this the ritual worship if it does not have a practical implications to it it is not spiritual worship or when Jesus came down from that mountainside what he is conveying to his disciples is more important that we stay out here and revelation this brightness is coming off of me let’s go down and actually present ourselves to God by service when we think sacrifice we think and think of it in two ways one is something has to die and definitely when we present ourselves as a living sacrifice something has died something needs to die that source. Should that our sinful nature needs to our passions are desirous to doing simple things needs to die but another element of its sacrifices also there the other element is sacrifices and authority it’s a submission we are to submit ourselves we are to offer ourselves to God so that he can use us when we read this passage what I think it tells us is it’s fantastic that we come here every Sunday Cintas said that we have Tuesday prayer it Cintas that each organization needs him several times a month would what is import is that these meetings that these worship services means that when we come down from the mountain we are ready to serve we are ready to reach out to others that that is spiritual worship spiritual worship is not the life of the monk who separates himself from the rest of culture fluoresces society spiritual worship is Jesus who does not separate himself he takes time for prayer he drenches his life in private prayer yes most of what the Scripture look courts is his interactions with others his concern for others is care for others is touching people is healing people that what we have to pick out from this when we will reinvent Jesus was presented before God and the Temple we need to realize that I must present myself to God how do I do that it means using this physical body to serve him not just praying not just singing not just even writing the check although all of those aren’t needed an important but going out in giving your time for others that’s one thing the second thing is when we look at the verse two do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your minds that I like this his ministry called the Ravi Zacharias international ministries are busy I am.org it’s a fantastic website I can spend hours on that website because is so much information and so one of the people who is on this team with Ravi Zacharias is Stuart McAllister & number listening to a a a a lecture by Stuart McAllister and he was referencing this verse and he said the verse very clearly says be transformed by the renewal of your mind not by the removal of your mind most of the people today most of the preachers we all we all are are accountable to this we intend to trade renewal for removal and seven knowing and questioning just be quiet and listen to what I saying that’s it instead of understanding something just go on blind faith we somehow I that elevated this chief word blind faith we don’t have blind faith in we should never have blind faith our faith is very much grounded on assist Oracle fax on the birth the wrestler the death and the resurrection of Christ on numerous pages of literature of prophecy of historical events that have happened all this is the basis for our faith we do not have a blind unreasonable faith nor should we have our faith must be thought out we need to challenge ourselves and I know that this is not something that comes easily especially when we grown-up memorizing and just putting these memorized answers down on today’s edition example whatnot and thinking that were good a that works when you’re a new Christian when you’re young Christian but if way old-time we still have that infantile perspective of Christian faith something is very wrong when we were talking about this so with our ever permission and him asking this in the leadership conference with the kids who come there and how many of that we just how many people here would would do go for this alley people have read Genesis chapter 22 division happens the Genesis chapter 2 somebody ask you a question when was which was which was first man or the creation of animals which came first the patient of humans are the creation of animals animals animals Genesis chapter 2 is a little different this is chapter 2 is a little different ideas another question how many days it take to create six Genesis chapter 2 is a little different Genesis chapter 2 is a little different for why have we never noticed this isn’t because we just memorized Genesis chapter 1 we just memorized challenge yourselves really challenge yourselves I saying this for the sake of UN for the sake of your children because what worked in Kerala Wallwork here in Canada that nobody challenges your faith and Gelineau on will bring up the difference between the creation narrative and evolution knowledge of in a mess with that we hear each and every one of your children will face that they will they will face people who have read the Bible better than we have and these people who have read the Bible better than us. Pointing out and saying this is a contradiction that the contradiction if we a within our community have not used our God given minds to engage these passages we will be lost at that moment it’s very difficult things I say that as a warning to you on the and as an encouragement to start start believing that when you present yourselves to Christ it means not only your body but it means your mind it means you present your minds to God everything that you learned in school all truth that you learn anywhere it, apart from God God is the source of all truth.. So we need to be seekers of truth and if we are truth seekers of truth we will understand God better but that only happens when we engage our minds don’t get caught up with what the world wants to to to is very interesting when we read Romans chapter 1 that God Paul says that the gods invisible attributes are seem so very clearly in nature that no one is without excuse no one is without excuse for believing that there is a God and yet so many people do not believe that and so Paul says that God gives these people over to their debased minds the world does not use its God-given intellect like it should and when it doesn’t it cuts God out there when you cut God out you’ve now lost all foundation for the what is the value what is the purpose of human life we have to be vigilant as we meditate on these two ideas is realize that if we do these two things if we present our bodies as a living sacrifice if we submit ourselves to serve others and move beyond. The the clichéd spirituality and if we would just give our minds over to him know that he is bigger than and we have our doubts know that he is not going to look down on you for asking questions he will only embracing because he knows that those questions comes from an inquisitive mind wants to know what we believe those two things then then we can get to the second half of the second verse so that you may discern what is the will of God what is good and acceptable and perfect unless we give ourselves unless we present our bodies must present our minds you cannot know the will of God and believe it just very blunt like that is at a I don’t know how else to explain this only one way to know little of God and that comes to submission are we willing to submit our bodies our time and energy energy is a big deal we want to say that for ourselves all that we have only ready to submit it to him are we ready to take our faith seriously and think it through really think it’s know it’s no strange coincidence that an engineer realized that is very rational to believe in Christ is no is no contradiction there we must think and when we do we must realize and then began to discern the will of God, so may the good Lord bless us in these two tasks of presenting ourselves for the Lord just as Jesus was presented as the passage is as a mark of his verification would do one of you please leaders in order for him and those who come prepared to take the holy communion if you would stand and say the prayer of confession after me