You Can Stumble But You Wont Fall Religion Essay Example

You Can Stumble But You Wont Fall Religion Essay Example You Can Stumble But You Wont Fall Religion Essay You Can Stumble But You Wont Fall Religion Essay Essay Topic: Everything I Never Told You Things Fall apart The Lord delectations in the manner of the adult male whose stairss he has made house ; though he stumble, he will non fall, for the Lord upholds him with his manus. Doug Wilcox That s Psalm 37:23-24 and this is Word Alive produced by Good News Broadcasting where we take the Bible and use its message to every twenty-four hours life. Hello and welcome. I m Doug Wilcox. Dr. Derek Stringer is our Bible Teacher. He s here once more to learn the subject Fresh Hope . . . That s what God wants to set into each of us. I ll be back from clip to clip, but here s Becky Kelly to state a little more about Derek s subject for today. Becky! Becky Kelly Thankss Doug. . . and allow me add my welcome to Doug s. Dr. Stringer has spoken about How to Have Joy All Year Long and Will You Be Happy Tomorrow? Today, the subject is You Can Stumble But You Wont Fall. That s something we all need to cognize approximately. Doug Wilcox The words of David in Psalm 37 are the focal point, verses 23 and 24. After you listen to what Derek has to state I think that you ll happen yourself utilizing these words to promote the people that you know who were traveling through difficult times. Listen to those poetries once more: The Lord delectations in the manner of the adult male whose stairss he has made house ; though he stumble, he will non fall, for the Lord upholds him with his manus. Over to Derek. Derek Stringer Thankss Doug and Becky. Though he stumble. Some interlingual renditions say, When he falls. Note that it does non state, If he stumbles. There is a large difference between when and if. The latter states a chance ; the former declares a certainty. David understood that all trusters fall finally. We stumble, we lose our manner, we struggle. No 1 is exempt. We all fall sooner or subsequently. It s what happens when we stumble along that makes all the difference. We can sum up the instruction of this text in two simple statements: ( 1 ) God ordains every measure we take-the good and the bad, the happy and the sad, the positive and the negative. The verb made house is really strong in the original Hebrew. It means to set up something so that it has a strong foundation. Proverbs 16:9 Tells us that in his bosom a adult male plans his class, but the LORD determines his stairss. Same thought as our text. Most of us know that God directs our stairss. But this verb is even stronger. God non merely directs our stairss, he besides determines or ordains our stairss. Because he is God, there are no accidents with him. No circumstance-whether good or bad-can semen to us apart from God s determined intent for us. All of us wonder what the following few months will convey. What will go on? Will it be a good clip or a bad clip for us personally? I ve researched that inquiry diligently and I know the reply: The following few months will be a batch like the last few months. In some ways, it will be concern as usual. You ll hold good yearss and bad yearss. You have some triumphs and some lickings. You ll be ill for a piece and you ll be healthy much of the clip. Some of your supplications will be answered ; some wo nt be answered. Some of your dreams will come true ; some will be dashed on the stones of difficult world. You ll detect that some of your friends will be at that place when you need them. Others will neglect you when you need them most. In many respects, life will be the same following hebdomad because we all face the same on-going challenges in our walk with the Lord. But know this: Your stairss in approaching hebdomads are made house by the Lord. He is in charge of the inside infor mations of your life. ( 2 ) God promises that when we fall, we will non be absolutely destroyed. Let s read the beginning of verse 23 of Psalm 37 once more. Doug Wilcox Though he stumbles, he will non fall. Derek Stringer Picture a trail that winds through a heavy wood. As the individual walks frontward, he does nt see the stone buried merely beneath the surface, and so he trips and falls to the land. Life is like that. We all stumble in many ways. The word translated utterly destroyed means to be cast hasty into a deep cavity. It s what happens when you stand at a drop border peering over the border, looking down 500 pess, when person pushes you from behind. When you eventually hit underside, you wo nt dust yourself off and maintain on traveling. You ve been utterly destroyed. God promises that wo nt go on to you and me. Though we may confront despairing, life-changing fortunes next twelvemonth, God will non let us to be utterly destroyed. Nothing can go on that will break up our relationship with him. The ground is clear. He upholds us with his mighty manus. Think of a male parent walking along with his immature boy by his side. There are two ways father and boy might keep custodies. The immature male child may make up with his bantam manus to hold on his male parent s immense manus. That works until the kid lurchs and he is forced to allow travel of his male parent s manus. But if the male parent places his immense manus around his boy s bantam manus, the male child is safe no affair what happens because his male parent s manus holds him up. He may falter but the male parent s manus upholds him. The autumn may be a autumn into problem or calamity, or it may be a autumn into serious moral wickedness. The autumn might be occasioned by the loss of a occupation, a wellness job, the break-up of a matrimony, the terminal of a friendly relationship, bankruptcy, or any kind of personal crisis that causes the loss of your repute. Or it could be a series of foolish picks that led you in a incorrect way so that you hurt your walk with God and hurt those around you every bit good. Sometimes the autumn of fortunes causes a autumn into resentment, substance maltreatment, choler, fury, opprobrious address, foolish determinations, lecherousness, criminal conversation, or other bad actions. The Bible repeatedly shows how easy this can go on to even the best people. The Bible Tells us the whole truth about human nature. We see work forces and adult females who are faithful one twenty-four hours and fickle the following. We see Peter self-praise, and so he is busted by his ain wickedness. We see worship assorted with concern, bravery followed by cowardliness, religion matched with uncertainty, generousness followed by greed, kindness overcome by haughtiness. We learn that strong people sometimes do really stupid things. Saints frequently act like evildoers. Derek Stringer These narratives are in the Bible both to teach us and to promote us. They teach us that even the best work forces under force per unit area can make really foolish things. No 1 is beyond the range of enticement. Very godly people can do some really incorrect choices-and suffer greatly as a consequence. And cause others to endure with them. It s good that the Bible shows this to us-or we would be tempted to deny this world. We like to believe, I m beyond that enticement. Do nt of all time state that. You do nt cognize what you re beyond. Today s triumph may really put you up for tomorrow s licking. Satan roams the universe like a mighty king of beasts, looking for cocksure Christians he can devour. Doug Wilcox Here are two other poetries we should see. Proverbs 24:16, Though a righteous adult male falls seven times, he rises once more, but the wicked are brought down by catastrophe. Derek Stringer We may fall once more and once more, problem may come once more and once more, we may fight once more and again-and once more! But it is the Lord s intent that we should rise-again and once more and once more. Doug Wilcox Psalm 145:14 declares that, The Lord upholds all those who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down. Derek Stringer When you fall, retrieve this: God neer intends you to remain down everlastingly. He intends for you to lift up and maintain on walking with him. Okay. So what does this intend? What practical aid is at that place in cognizing all of this. You say, Derek, Life hurts. . . or it may make really shortly. What s the application of this truth? Here are four practical applications. Number 1. Every item of life is under God s control. If God is God, so he must cognize about all the things that happen to us, and in some sense we ca nt to the full understand, that all things includes both the best and the worst that comes our manner. Becky Kelly Does this intend even our wickednesss are ordered by the Lord. Derek Stringer Well, we have to believe carefully in replying a inquiry like this. God is neer the writer or provoker of wickedness. Never. Sin is ever our ain duty. But that does non to the full reply the inquiry. If our wickedness can somehow be independently of God so that our wickedness ( and so, all the wickedness and wretchedness of the existence ) can somehow exist outside of God s ageless program, so God can non genuinely be sovereign over all parts of the existence. We might inquire the inquiry this manner: Is God crowned head over Satan? The reply must be yes. When you come all the manner to the bottom line, the reply goes something like this: God reigns over all parts of the existence all the clip, and he does it in such a manner that all things must suit into his ageless program. This even includes the world of wickedness itself. For grounds that we merely partially understand, God decreed to allow wickedness to come in the existence ( chiefly to expose his glorification through the grace that would be shown in delivering evildoers through the decease of his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ ) . When we sin, we remain to the full accountable for the incorrect picks we make-and the negative effects we must confront. But if God did non let it to go on, it would non go on. Therefore in the broadest sense of God s sovereignty, even our wickedness can non take topographic point apart from God s Godhead edict. Doug Wilcox There s a enigma here is nt at that place? Derek Stringer Absolutely, and it is a enigma so tremendous that we will pass infinity larning more about it, and wondering at the wealths of God s grace and the wisdom of his program. But if this is non true, so God is non genuinely God at all, and we are ( to borrow an Apostle Paul phrase ) of all work forces most suffering. But it is true, and hence we rejoice to function a God whose ways are far beyond our limited heads to understand. He can do the wrath of adult male congratulations him. And there is an of import personal application to be made at this point. Since every item of life comes under God s control, we can stay confident and peaceable even when life itself seems to whirl out of control. Are you familiar with the name George Muller of Bristol? There s a route ( a long 1 ) named after him in Bristol. For over 60 old ages, George Muller directed an orphanhood in Bristol, England, that provided for over 10,000 male childs and misss. Here is the astonishing fact: He neer one time made an entreaty for money. He depended on God for whatever was needed to back up the work. He would garner with his fellow workers to shout out to God for aid. On many occasions, the aid came while they prayed-a grocer would come by with staff of life, cheese, meat and eggs so the kids would hold breakfast in the forenoon. Mr. Muller proved in his ain life that you can take God at his Word. After he died, person picked up his well-worn Bible and began to flick through it. Because Mr. Muller was an devouring Bible reader, its pages were filled with jottings from his day-to-day devotednesss. Following to the words of Psalm 37:23, he had added two small words to the text: The stairss AND STOPS of a good adult male are ordered by the Lord. How true that is. For the Christian the way of life is neer an unbroken consecutive line to heaven. We all go through many dangers, labors and traps on our manner to the Heavenly City. How good to cognize that our God ordains both the stairss and Michigans of life. Second. God takes pleasance in our battle to walk in sanctity. Read the beginning of verse 23 Becky. Becky Kelly Okay. . . it says, The Lord delectations in the manner of the adult male. Derek Stringer See a male parent and his immature girl who is merely larning how to walk. For months she has been creeping ; late she has learned how to draw herself up and stand on her coggling legs while keeping her male parent s manus. One twenty-four hours she pulls her manus free, wobbles for a minute, tries to take a measure frontward, and falls down. Does her male parent state her off for falling down? Of class non. He smiles a spot at her cryings, and so he helps her dorsum up. Good parents know that falling is a necessary portion of larning how to walk. If you neer fall, you ll neer larn how to walk. And parents do their kids no favor by being so protective that their kids neer fall down. Falling is nt merriment for the kid, but a wise parent knows that falling ever comes before walking. This applies straight to the falls we take spiritually. Our battles are necessary even though they are non pleasant or easy to digest. Sometimes ( frequently! ) we bring problem on ourselves by the foolish picks we make. And sometimes we end up aching ourselves and those around us really greatly by reiterating those bad picks over and over once more. Marriages terminal, friendly relationships are broken, churches split, our kids suffer, and the cause of Christ is hurt by the things we say and do. Sin is serious concern, and we neer sin without aching ourselves, and really frequently, those around us. I do nt intend to propose that God takes pleasance in our wickedness or that our wickedness does non convey penalty. But when we sin, we sometimes wrongly conclude that God must detest me now. And in our desperation we want to conceal in a cupboard and neer come out. How could God of all time take us back after what we did? The reply is, God loves his kids with an everlasting love. Nothing we say or do can of all time divide us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. We are joined to our Father with sets of ageless love stronger than steel. He loves us excessively much to allow us travel on in wickedness forever. And when we turn back to him, with trembling lip, profoundly guilty, fearing the worst, believing all hope is lost, we discover the good intelligence that he waits with unfastened weaponries for us to come place to him. When the Prodigal Son eventually came to his senses in the far state, holding wasted his heritage on exuberant life so that he ended up eating with the hogs, holding rehearsed what he would state, experiencing no longer worthy to be called his male parent s boy, in the thick of his shame and desperation, sloging down the long route place, after all that, when he was yet a long manner off, his male parent ran to run into him, hugged him, and smothered him with busss. When your kids disobey and you punish them, do you detest them or make you love them? You discipline them because you love them and because your bosom is broken over their noncompliance. The same is true a million times more of our heavenly Father. The things we suffer because of our noncompliance prove that God still loves us. He waits uneasily for the slightest bend in his way. No affair what we have done, if we will return to the Lord, he will copiously excuse us. One other point and we will travel on. God licenses us to fall when he could halt it. If he permits it, so what he permits must finally be for our religious benefit. Not the autumn itself, but what we will finally larn from it. God allows us to endure when he could halt it. Not that enduring itself is good, but it is frequently the tract to tremendous approval for us. ( 3 ) God designs our tests so they will non destruct us. This follows from all that I have said. Verse 24 assures us that though we may falter or autumn temporarily, we will non be absolutely destroyed. God will non let anything to for good destruct our relationship with him. Not even decease itself can break up our strong connexion with God. Doug Wilcox Job 23:10, He knows the manner that I take ; when he has tested me, I will come away as gold. Derek Stringer When you are in the furnace, it is difficult to believe that any good could ensue from the ardent test, but God says, Wait for a piece and you will see pure gold. During the worst minutes, we take this by religion and bent on to God, believing that better yearss must finally come. Thus it is that Job lost everything, Joseph was cast into prison on a hypocrite colza charge, and Jonah ended up in the abdomen of a great fish. Jonah was a really loath prophesier whose concluding words are both angry and impeaching. But still he was God s adult male for Nineveh. God said, I m traveling to direct you to the abdomen of a fish so you can believe about things for a piece. He did, and finally he was puked out on the beach ( non a really pleasant experience ) . Job lost everything and gained back more than he lost. Joseph ended up the 2nd most powerful adult male in Egypt. Sometimes our tests lead to a publicity ; other times we feel like we ve been puked up on the beach. God does it both ways-and we ll likely see both if we live long plenty. But God had bigger things in head in all three instances. He was nt through with Job or Joseph or Jonah. Nor is he through with us merely because we stumble and autumn. See what Jesus said to Peter in the Upper Room on the dark before he was crucified: Doug Wilcox Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your religion may non neglect. And when you have turned back, beef up your brothers. Derek Stringer This statement deserves particular notice because Jesus said it before Peter s treble denial. In fact, Jesus said it merely before Peter made his braggart promise of unending fidelity. The point is, Jesus saw it all coming, knew everything before it took topographic point: The self-praise, The teenage miss around the fire, The curse, The perennial denials, The shame, The acrimonious cryings, The guilt, The Restoration. He knew Peter better than Peter knew himself. He knew the stairss Peter was about to take in the incorrect way. In a sense, he had more echt assurance in Peter than Peter had in himself. By himself, Peter was merely full of himself. But Jesus said, I have prayed for you. He did nt halt Peter from touting or from denying. He let affairs take their natural class, but he prayed for Peter, cognizing that Peter at bosom was a good adult male who loved him, and cognizing that his denial was non the existent Peter. The existent Peter was the adult male who declared, You are the Christ, the Son of the life God. The nazarene allowed Peter to fall off, cognizing that through his supplications, Peter would finally return, and when he did, he would be a better, stronger adult male, humbled by his failure, ready to function the Lord with a humbleness Born of painful failure. ( 4 ) We will non absolutely autumn because God will non allow travel. Theologians call this the philosophy of ageless security. It merely means that those whom God saves, he saves everlastingly. Though we stumble and fall a 1000 times, God s love is house because his intents are ageless. Our redemption rests non on our public presentation but on God s unchanging character. Doug Wilcox Charles Spurgeon once more: No saint shall fall eventually or fatally. Sorrow may convey us to the Earth, and decease may convey us to the grave, but lower we can non drop, and out of the lowest of all we shall originate to the highest of all. Derek Stringer Martin Luther said that it takes three things to do a adult male of God-meditation, supplication and enticement. We re all right with the first two because we know we need to read the Bible and pray. But most of us would non add enticement to the list. Luther meant that godly character can merely be developed in the melting pot of life where we fight many conflicts with the universe, the flesh, and the Satan. The enticement to discontinue, to desperation, to give in to bitterness, to fly the battle, to give to crave, to give in to greed, to indulge ourselves, to walk in pride, these things either destruct us or they make us stronger. Prayer and Bible reading entirely can non do us godly. We need the battles of life to do us strong. One Minister made this remark. Looking back on his life he was really certain of himself in his mid-twentiess. But he said, I have bumped up against the difficult border of my restrictions and wickedness, once more and once more. I am less certain about what s incorrect with Christendom, and more certain about what s incorrect with me. Those are wise words from a adult male who has experienced the grace of God through the ups and downs of life. We do non feign that our tests neer happened or that Christians neer suffer. We suffer merely like everyone else on this sin-cursed planet. Nor is it good when we fall into wickedness. Just inquire any Christian who fell into serious moral wickedness how good it was. Sin merely delights for a season. All Satan s apples have worms. But there is an of import truth in our transition that we need to understand: God is at work in our tests and in our falls in a manner we neer dreamed, neer knew, and neer saw at the clip. Nothing is wasted with God. All things genuinely do work together for our good and for God s glory-even though we seldom see that in progress. I remember sing a adult male in infirmary. He told me that he had less than a twelvemonth to populate. In fact he had less than a month! He said, I had known that was a possibility, but it is still jaring to hear it said. I saw no resentment or choler at that place, and no fright either. My friend wanted to populate every bit long as he could, and he fought every bit difficult as he could, but if you had asked him, Are you all right? he ll answer, Yes, I m ok. It s non easy but my friend had come to clasps with the fact that God loves him and is telling every measure he takes. That s what this great truth can make for us. Pray for yourself that the truth of these poetries will truly travel place and beef up you now and for future yearss. Pray for the people around you in your life excessively. Pray for me. Prayer is a strength to our psyche. Some of the replies we can see. Others are known merely to God. I mention that to indicate out that the supplications of the trusters are one manner the Lord upholds his kids as they walk the way that leads from Earth to heaven. Doug Wilcox Thank you Derek. You re listening to Word Alive produced by Good News Broadcasting. Dr. Derek Stringer is our Bible Teacher. Here s a idea that may promote you: If it is possible, God loves you even more when you struggle because that s when you need him most. When is a male parent most honoured? When his kids are in problem and turn to him for aid. Even so, our God is honoured and shows his particular attention for his kids when they go through battles on Earth. Here s Derek once more. Derek Stringer Let s sum up the application of this message with three simple statements: ( 1 ) Your battles are necessary battle on! ( 2 ) Your Father has non forgotten you bent on! ( 3 ) Your hereafter is assured walk on! Here are three good slogans for you: Fight on! Hang on! Walk on! God will non set you in an intolerable state of affairs. But he may set you in a state of affairs that seems intolerable so that you will turn to Him. Remember that God does non give his strength in progress but merely when needed. Each twenty-four hours this hebdomad you will hold what you need. We may therefore travel away into the approaching yearss with assurance, hope, and joy. And in the terminal we come back to the Lord Jesus and back to the cross. If you are tired of your wickedness, run to the cross. If you want a new start in life, run to the cross. If you feel like a failure, tally to the cross. If you fear the hereafter, run to the cross. If you need trust and encouragement, run to the cross. If you want to run into Jesus, run to the cross. Becky Kelly Reach us about this because we truly would wish to assist you. Reach inside informations are coming up in a minute. Derek Stringer For those who do nt cognize the Lord, the Bible says there is merely one measure between you and devastation. But there is besides merely one measure between you and Jesus. It s the measure of religion. Reach out to Jesus as Lord and Saviour. He will come to you and your life will neer be the same. I said earlier that the following few months will be merely like last few months. Let me amend that statement merely a spot: The following few months will be merely like the last few months-only wholly different! Some things will be the same, much will be different, and some things will be trade name new to us. Be encouraged. The hereafter rests in the good custodies of a God who loves you more than you can conceive of. You may falter, but you wo nt wholly fall. This is God s promise to you. Amons. Doug Wilcox You Can Stumble But You Wo nt Fall . . . Psalm 37 poetries 23 and 24. That s been our subject today in Dr. Stringer s current series on happening Fresh Hope. You can acquire the complete series of six messages on Cadmium or cassette merely reference Fresh Hope when you call. Becky Kelly Following clip Derek will undertake the topic Managing Life When Confronting Deep Regret. Do nt lose it. Doug Wilcox Thankss for being with us today for Word Alive produced by Good News Broadcasting.