CHURCH WITH A PURPOSE TITLE: “FINDING DISCERNMENT IN YOUR LIFE” MAIN SCRIPTURE: Hebrews 5:11-6:1 “But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.” Hebrews 5:14 NKJV Discernment is not a popular pulpit topic. Even the author of Hebrews acknowledged in v.11 that it was not easy to discuss or explain because so many “have become dull of hearing.” Notice the phrase “have become.” He is not saying that the people were dull of hearing but rather that they had become that way over time. “You should be teachers of others now,” he admonishes. “Instead you are like children, needing to be taught again.” The book of Hebrews was directed to Jews who had become believers but gradually had brought elements of Jewish tradition—traditions of men-- back that did not line up with the word of God. Some people interpret the passage about believers needing to be taught again as justification for people who have taught Bible studies or classes for a long time to take a vacation and go back to being taught themselves. While it might be true that taking a rest and going back to simpler concepts in the Bible can be helpful, the author was being stern, rather than complimentary toward these believers. “You should know better than this by now. Where is your discernment? Why do you believe everything you hear? Do you need to learn all over again what you should be teaching others? We cannot teach others what we do not know ourselves. So, what is discernment? Why is it so important? We have all made decisions in the past that we now wish we could go back and change. Wouldn’t it be great to be able to “rewind” time and go back and make those decisions again? I wonder how many times Adam and Eve wished that they had just left that tree ALONE! How many times did Eve wish she hadn’t listened to the slimy sales pitch of that serpent as he told her how one little bite could make her like God? How many times did they see the consequences of their sin in the next eight hundred years or so that they lived? How many times have WE wished she had obeyed God when we see the damage and destruction of sin? That’s a long time to regret a terrible decision! God created us with the ability to make decisions, but we often make those decisions without discernment. We’ve probably all heard and followed the advice about listing the “pros” and “cons” of a certain decision, and then we just go with the side that has the most “pros.” Doing such a thing does not always guarantee that you make the right decision. Consider some of the people in the Bible that we look back upon as God’s servants. One of my favorite Bible people is Jonah. I can’t wait to meet him in heaven. Jonah had struggles that I can really identify with. When God told Jonah to go to Nineveh, Jonah probably sat down at that minute and began writing his own little scroll (list) of “pros” and “cons” regarding going to Nineveh. When he couldn’t find any “pros,” he headed off in the other direction. We know the story, but by the time the Lord had finished with Jonah, he was headed to Nineveh. There might have been the same “cons” on his list, but he was obeying God’s command. (Even then, God STILL wasn’t finished with him!) Discernment is making the right choices based on God’s standards, NOT the world’s. They’ll offer advice, all right. We can find vast forests’ worth of trees lining the bookshelves, printed with the world’s advice for any situation. But God’s Word offers what we need. What hinders discernment in our lives? Immaturity. We might use the phrase, “You’re so immature,” to someone in a demeaning way without really thinking about it. The immaturity described in Hebrews 5 is spiritual. Going to church, attending seminary, teaching Bible studies, or holding positions within the church does not necessarily guarantee that the person is spiritually mature. All the knowledge that these Jews had certainly did not make them more mature! Many people attend church for superficial reasons without ever desiring to grow deep in their walk with the Lord. After all, the closer we grow to the Lord, the more like Him we are bound to become, and some of us just don’t like too much change in our lives. The author of Hebrews describes the immature Christians as “dull of hearing.” Oh, they were physically hearing. There is a difference between “hearing” and “listening” as everyone knows. Hearing is involuntary, but listening is voluntary. It is a choice to give complete attention and obedience. These words—and every word of the Bible—were not just written for those Christians in the first century. They are for the twenty-first century Christians too. The immature Christian is compared with a baby, who is nourished only by milk until he is able to eat solid food. Babies will put anything into their mouths—in fact, in my personal experience, they are more likely to put something non-edible in their mouths than the baby food I am trying to give them. Would we put just anything into our mouths? Of course not, we say. We are older and able to discern what is able to be eaten and what is not, but babies do not yet have the ability to discern. In the same way, immature or baby Christians often will put anything into their spiritual mouths that looks palatable. We often jump to the erroneous conclusion that if something is labeled “Christian” then it must be okay to read or watch or listen to. But that is not always the case. A discerning, mature Christian knows the Word of God and knows that not everyone who preaches or writes books with a Christian label is necessarily going to preach the unerring Word of God. As my mother says, they know how to either “chew the meat and spit out the bones,” or to avoid it altogether. Such is the discerning Christian. Can we discern between right and wrong? Most of us would probably say “yes,” but can we? Today “right” and “wrong” are clouded by the “gray areas” where things that used to be considered wrong are no longer considered so, but there are no gray areas in the truth. He is the Truth. We have dropped many of God’s standards and created our own, based on feelings. There are those who seek to justify their sins, but if the Bible says something is wrong, then it’s wrong, and it doesn’t matter how we feel about it. We are persuaded by a “form of godliness” as the Bible expresses, but not the real thing. For instance, God’s Word warns men and women not to become unequally yoked with unbelievers, and yet many Christians, knowing this, choose to marry a spouse who is not a Christian, with the idea of “winning them to the Lord,” and the relationship often ends in heartbreak for both, and the Christian is pulled toward the world instead of the other way around. Can we discern between fact and fiction? Many of us have trouble with that; and advertising executives spend a fortune each year to capitalize on people’s lack of discernment. Undoubtedly, we have all discovered many items that did not live up to their descriptions. And how many times have we read something or heard a rumor without getting the facts? The lack of discernment between fact and fiction can lead to a great deal of trouble for us and others affected by our decisions. Can we discern between God’s will and our will? A survey was done recently where Christians were asked this question: “Are you certain of God’s will in your life?” Only 8% gave an affirmative answer. Isn’t that tragic? We struggle with discernment. Every decision we make—right or wrong—has a cost that often affects others. Yes, obeying God’s will has a cost too. But when we have the discernment that God wants to develop within us, we can accept the cost and not struggle with the payment. Can we discern between good things and God things? Both might be good, but God wants what is best for us. He didn’t give us His best just so we could give Him back some part. The leftovers. I read a sign on a church once that said, “Give God what’s right, not what’s left.” We may not find those exact words in the Bible but there is truth in those words. What would have become of us had He kept His best and tossed us the leftovers? We would be on our way to hell, because only the best—only the blood of that perfect Lamb could cover our sins. We need to learn to discern between good things…and GOD things. How do we do that? Just how do we learn to discern? It sounds like some motto for a poster, but God is serious about this. He wants Christians marching in His army and not just crawling around in His nursery. Our Sunday School teacher, in teaching about godliness and growing in our faith, described herself sitting on a bench. “Are you a Christian?” “Yes.” “Well, what are you doing on that bench? “ “I’m just waiting here for the Lord to pick me up.” Of course we laughed at the example but it is a very accurate picture of a lot of Christians. They are not growing, just waiting. Verse 14 makes it clear that discernment is something that must be practiced, and developing that discernment takes more than just sitting on a bench (or church pew.) How do we start? 1) Learn to be still, quiet, and wait on the Lord. Psalm 46:10 tells us, “Be still and know that I am God.” Being still and quiet is a lost art today. Our senses are constantly bombarded by noise, and when we do get the opportunity for a few moments of quiet, what do we do? We turn on that TV, that iPod, and place that cell phone right where we can jump on it just in case someone sends a text of life-or-death importance. We don’t know how to be still! We don’t want to be still. And the Enemy does not want us to be still and quiet, either, because he does not want us to listen for God’s still, small voice. When was the last time we were still before God? And waiting on the Lord? Probably the word we despise more than any other today is wait. We have to do it but we begrudge every second. Yet the Lord commands us to be still and to wait for Him instead of jumping in with our own solution (and landing in a mess.) 2) Learn to ask. James 4:2 tells us that we do not have because we do not ask, or because we ask amiss, for the wrong purpose. How many of us have made decisions without asking God first? He is often an afterthought. “Oh, yes, God, I did this but I do want Your will to be done. Let me know!” He wants us to ask before we decide, and before we attempt to discern on our own. James also says that if anyone needs wisdom, we should ask it of God. 3) Learn to seek. Seeking may sound like asking, but it is even more active. Matthew 7:7 tells us, “Seek, and you shall find.” When was the last time we truly sought God’s direction in our lives? When was the last time we got on our knees and truly sought His will? Do we seek His will (not ours) like we seek those bargains on the day after Thanksgiving? ( Some of these people actually camp out at the stores!) When was the last time we “camped out” in God’s Word, in the presence of God, crying out to Him, clinging to Him, wrestling Him like Jacob did until He blessed us? We may have to wait on Him but it doesn’t mean we don’t continually seek Him while we await His answer. 4) Get into God’s Word. This may seem obvious, but apparently it isn’t obvious enough to many Christians. The Bible provides “milk” for those new in Christ but it also provides “meat,” solid food that we need to grow. How are we to discern from right and wrong, good and bad, true or false by God’s standards if we don’t know His Word? If a monetary reward were offered for each hour spent reading the Word, we’d have some eager readers! But there IS a reward for reading His Word—a far greater reward. It is His wisdom that allows us to practice that discernment, and we cannot begin to know His wisdom unless we first know Him and His Word. Neither discernment nor maturity will happen overnight. In this day of “I want it NOW,” the idea of patiently pursuing the Lord, diligently studying His Word, and faithfully serving Him may be difficult to grasp. Those who would teach others must first be learners! The idea of exercising our discernment may be challenging too. How wonderful to know that our faithfulness to Him now brings eternal rewards! So be still. Wait. Ask. Seek. Search with all your heart for the wisdom and the discernment that only He can give. “Be still and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10
Posted on: Sun, 11 Aug 2013 20:52:59 +0000
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