Who IS Lord Over Us?

Just How Far Will You Let Jesus Rule Your Life?

Psalm 12:1-4

Pastor Craig Ledbetter

15 August, 2010   AM

Bible Baptist Church, Ballincollig, Cork, Ireland

www.biblebc.com

 

I.       Introduction (Psalm 12:1-4)

 

A.     What a question! “Who is Lord over us?”

 

1.      Really it is not a question at all, but a statement by the world against God!

2.      It basically says, Don’t tell me what I can and cannot do. Nobody can do that! I’m free!

3.      No controls, no restrictions, no Lord over our lives

4.      I can do as I please, and it is not wrong

5.      You say, “Those are very strong words,” but that is the attitude today everywhere!

 

B.     It is a Pagan philosophy – an pagan attitude in our universities, our colleges, our schools, our Radio stations, our books, our movies, our culture, our thinking

 

1.      Parents use it in child training

 

a.       From Dr Benjamin Spock – let the child alone, he will find his own way

b.      To 99% of all parents today not making their kids do ANYTHING they don’t want to do

 

2.      Governments use it is crowd control

 

a.       Just let people do whatever they want as long as no one gets hurt

b.      It doesn’t matter if something is right or wrong, just if somebody gets hurt, THEN it is wrong

 

C.     It’s called, Do as thou wilt shall be the whole of the law!

 

1.      Do you know who promoted that phrase 100 years ago? Satanist Alistair Crowley

2.      But there is a flaw in it. Jesus exposed this philosophy in John 8:44

3.      People believe it is freedom, but there is no freedom in being Satan’s puppet!!!

 

D.     I want us to ask ourselves this question, and I want to help every one of us have a solid answer to it! Why? Because it will define who we are and what we do for the rest of our lives!

 

II.    Message

 

A.     Where did this pagan thinking come from?

 

1.      Have you ever wondered where that came from?

 

a.       Why we ALL are locked in a hypocritical cycle of selfishness?

b.      Why people today are living, doing only what they want?

 

2.      It did NOT originate with Alistair Crowley

3.      It came from Satan (Gen 3:1-5) – Satan promised we would be free from God’s rules! A lie!

4.      It came from ourselves – it is in our nature

 

a.       People naturally worship their wants – whatever makes them feel good (Philp 3:19; 2:21; Rom 16:17,18)

b.      Most people resist authority, especially God’s authority (Job 21:14,15)

c.       Most people hate to commit themselves to God (1Kings 18:21)

d.      It is how it has always been (Isaiah 53:6)

 

B.     What feeds this kind of thinking?

 

1.      It is not enough that people don’t like submission, or servanthood, but entire industries exist soley to feed this philosophy with…

2.      Rock Music (Mt 7:16-20)

 

a.       Riots, drinking, drugs, fornication, rebellion – fruits of the music

b.      The music you play constantly in the background affects you

c.       AND it affects your children! Don’t think your children are going to love and honour you when all you do is play sensual, self-focused music all day long!

 

3.      Movies, Books, Entertainments – all are without God today, and all are saying the same thing… Follow your heart! Do as thou wilt! Don’t do what anybody else says!

4.      Pornography – nearly a €100 billion a year industry!!!

 

a.       Every second €3,000 euros is spent on pornography

b.      Every second 28,000 people are viewing pornography

c.       China makes the most money producing pornography currently at over €25 billion a year

 

5.      Prosperity (Luke 12:19) – gives a false sense of freedom! Beware of prosperity without Biblical responsibility – everybody wants to be rich – think it will make them happy!

6.      Modern Churches – the worst influence of all! You would think Christ’s followers would be different!!! But modern churches are all about making people find happiness!

 

a.       The music, entertainment in modern churches

 

1)      Most all are “performances” – all are for praise of men (John 12:42,43)

2)      Money spent on sound equipment and the “bands” is more than given to missionaries, for the printing of Gospel tracts, and to pay pastors

3)      "Music is NEVER used in Scripture as a means of reaching the lost." (Tim Fisher, The Battle for Christian Music, p.155)

 

b.      Worldly lifestyles – no difference between the way a Christian, a Bible believer lives, and the world around them (1Thes 5:22)

c.       Only tickling people’s ears (2Tim 4:2-4) Gal 4:16 “Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?”

d.      Thinking how a person lives does not matter to God (see Eph 5:1-7)

e.       Misunderstanding God’s grace (Romans 6:1,2)!

 

C.     Satan is Lord of Too Many Lives! I hope you start to agree!

                                                                                                

1.      Some of you think because you have a little religious show or act, that God is fine with that, when you will split hell wide open because you have never been truly born again!

 

a.       People go to their churches, and then head to the pub for hours on end

b.      People pray a few prayers at a funeral, and then download such filth and wickedness that they have no words to describe such sin

c.       People say “God bless” but never bless God a single moment of their lives

d.      All the religion in the world, and all the prayers in the world never changed one person and never saved any soul – only SURRENDER to Jesus Christ can change a rebel!

 

2.      You may be born again, and on your way to heaven by the grace of God, but Satan still rules what many of you do, where you go, what you think, what you listen to on your radio, and what friends you hang around with!

 

a.       You say that is not possible!

 

1)      Peter (Mt 16:21-23)

2)      James and John (Luke 9:51-55)

 

b.      Jesus asked the question to His disciples in Luke 6:46 “And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?” A good question isn’t it?

 

3.      Why is this? How can this be?

 

a.       Because people are simply doing as they want! As they will!

b.      Jesus said, “NOT my will, but thine be done, Father!”

c.       The Christian life is exactly opposite of how we naturally live and think!

 


D.     Jesus Earned the Right to be Lord of Our Lives (Philp 2:5-11)

 

1.      By His perfect life – never sinned, never thought of Himself!

2.      By His substitutionary death – the death of the cross! Experienced the wrath of God against sin in your and my place! That earned my obedience!

3.      By His impossible resurrection from the dead! The cross may have impressed me, but the resurrection conquered me, lock, stock, and barrel!

4.      He has earned the right to be in charge of all our lives!

 

a.       Not just of your destiny – that’s being saved FROM hell

b.      But also of your imaginations (2Cor 10:4,5,6)

c.       And of your words. (Eph 4:29)  Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.

d.      And of your plans and will (Psalm 40:8)

e.       And of your worries (Php 4:6)  Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

f.       And of your battles  (Rom 12:19)

 

E.      It’s Time to Let Jesus be Lord – to be under HIS control, no matter how hard it may be

 

1.      Starts with, Believe on Him AS Lord, and not just as Saviour (Acts 16:31)

2.      Seek to do His will (2Peter 1:14) – ever asked God what is His will? Daily?

3.      Make Him YOUR Lord (John 20:27,28) – the God in charge of your life, your decisions, your attitudes, your decisions!

4.      Serve HIM (2Cor 4:5; Col 3:23) – Don’t just take FROM Him! Obey Him! Do everything just for Him!

 

a.       Forgive when HE says to forgive

b.      Pray when you want to worry

c.       Keep your mouth shut when He says keep quiet!

d.      Love and bless when you want to kill

e.       Be in church when your body wants to sit on the couch

f.       Read your Bible when your flesh wants to stay in bed

 

5.      Sacrifice everything to keep Him in the lead (Mt 10:37; Philp 3:8)

 

III. Conclusion

 

A.     What is the answer to this question… Who is Lord over us? Our friends? Our TV shows? Our pillow? Our bellies? Our children? Our wives? Our secret sins?

B.     Who is Lord over YOU?

 

1.      I didn’t ask what church you go to!

2.      I don’t care how many prayers you have prayed

3.      It doesn’t matter how much money you have given away to charity

4.      The question is, WHO IS IN CHARGE OF YOUR LIFE?

5.      If you think YOU are your own boss, Jesus has news for you – you are only a puppet (Jn 8:44)

6.      Wouldn’t it be nice to actually answer, The Lord Jesus Christ!?

 

C.     Satan is Lord of Too Many Lives! I hope you finally agree!

D.     Jesus Earned the Right to be Lord of Our Lives (Philp 2:5-11)

 

1.      Not just of your destiny – that’s being saved FROM hell

2.      But also of your imaginations

3.      And of your words.

4.      And of your plans and will

5.      And of your worries

6.      And of your battles

 

E.      It’s Time to Let Jesus be Lord – no matter how hard it may be

F.      Challenge:

 

1.      Admit just how wicked we have been, going our own way! Confess it to God as sin

2.      Humble yourselves to the people you have trampled on in search of YOUR fulfilment

3.      Humbly accept God’s will and direction for your life

4.      See what a life lived for Jesus Christ is like, instead of only for your belly!