Verse Of The Week (05/27/16)

Presque Isle State Park, Erie, PA   4-22-16

"For all of us have become like one who is unclean, 

And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment; 

And all of us wither like a leaf, 

And our iniquities, like the wind, take us away."

(Isa. 64:6)

Who is grateful for Jesus' provision?  He alone brings new life where there was death and blessing where there was barrenness.

Regarding Iniquity (Psa. 66:18) (Part 6)

CONCLUSION

• Why not make an altar, right where you are?
• Ask God to reveal any sin, especially sin that you know needs to be evicted.
• That stubborn thing has infested your heart too long!
• Once you identify any sin, you have three options.
• 1 - You can leave the altar unchanged and then continue to flirt with that sin.
• 2 - You can leave the altar unchanged, because you excused your sin.
• The reality is that there will always be people who will try to convince you that it really isn't a big deal, and that God understands your struggle, so you shouldn't be too hard on yourself.
• No, no and no!
• You will never get free from sin's death grip by listening to those people!
• Christians take sin seriously, deal with it decisively, and are willing to do anything to be free.
• The goal of the Christian life is not sin management.
• My friend, there is victory available for you today!
• May God restore to you and me a violent hatred of sin.
• 3 - You can stay at the altar, “pray through”, repent of your sin and receive the victory.
•  Surety follows purity.
• Allow God to do a work in your heart so that He won't ignore you when you pray.
• Prov. 28:9
• Is your heart right with God?
• If your answer is no, what do you intend to do about it?
• Mt. 5:8.

Regarding Iniquity (Psa. 66:18) (Part 5)

USUALLY WE DON'T INVEST ENOUGH TIME PREPARING OUR HEARTS.

• Here is a good prayer principle: Check in your heart before you check off your list.
• Examine yourself (1 Cor. 11:28a; 2 Cor. 13:5).
• Invite God the Father to examine you (Psa. 139:23-24; Jer. 17:10).
• Jesus will search your heart (Rom. 8:27).

OBSERVATIONS:

• YOU CANNOT AFFORD TO LIVE WITHOUT GOD'S PAYING ATTENTION TO YOUR PRAYERS.
• He will allow you that option, if you prefer your iniquity, though I don't know anyone who would say that is preferable.
• REMEMBER THAT YOUR HEART IS PREDISPOSED TO REBEL, NOT SUBMIT.
• “The heart wants what it wants, and that is the problem” (Woody Allen).
• Jer. 17:9
• Either you direct your heart to pursue purity, or your heart will direct you to pursue sin.
• THERE IS NO WAY TO NURTURE AND PROTECT INIQUITY (WICKEDNESS) AND BE RIGHT WITH GOD.
• Christians hate what God hates.
• God hates sin.
• He especially hates pride, arrogance, the evil way and the perverted tongue (Prov. 8:13).
• Struggle is permitted, but progress toward victory is expected.
• Staying “stuck” year after year, decade after decade, strongly suggests you still enjoy that particular sin.
• As a believer in Jesus, you are called to know the truth, love the truth and live in the truth.

Regarding Iniquity (Psa. 66:18) (Part 4)

THERE ARE TWO WAYS THAT GOD CAN HEAR PRAYER.

• God can hear your prayers because He is omniscient.
• That means He knows everything there is to know, – past, present and future.
• Since God knew the words you would pray before you ever spoke them (Psa. 139:4), then certainly, he heard you.
• He “heard” your words, but He ignored their plea and refused to take action.
• God can hear your prayers because He is attentive.
• When you prayed, you got His attention.  
• He decided to act, whether or not you presently see the evidence of His activity.
• What's the difference between the two ways God can hear you?
• God responds to the person whose heart is pure (Psa. 34:15).
• Once again, surety follows purity.
• The assurance that God is acting upon your requests comes from the preparation you did in your heart.
• You cleaned out your heart in such a way that God couldn't possibly turn away.

Regarding Iniquity (Psa. 66:18) (Part 3)

LET'S PICK APART THE FOUR KEY WORDS IN VERSE 18.

• The first key word is “regard.”
• Literally, it means “to see” or “to gaze.”
• This gaze or stare produces a satisfaction.
• It contains the idea of awareness.
• When you become aware of sin, that is, when you “see it”, you can do one of two things.
• You can do the responsible thing and repent. 
• You can do the irresponsible thing and rebel.
• The second key word is “wickedness.”
• The King James calls it “iniquity.”
• The Hebrew means “to pant” or “to exert oneself in vain.”
• The dominant image contains the idea of strong desire.
• Iniquity is sin that you entertain, enjoy and protect.
• No wonder the word is frequently associated with idolatry!
• Psa. 5:5
• The third key word is “heart.”
• The heart is your center, the place where feelings (emotion), choices (volition) and intellect (cognition) are processed and activated.
• The fourth key word is “hear.”
• This word carries the idea of listening with intent to respond.
• It is intelligent hearing that invites attention and consideration.
•  Psalm 66:18 says, “God will not hear.”
• In modern English that means “God will ignore me.”
• The thought that God might ignore you is troubling, isn't it?

Regarding Iniquity (Psa. 66:18) (Part 2)

THERE IS A PROGRESSION IN PSALM 66.

• The emphasis in the first section is global.
• The writer calls the people of earth to rejoice in God.
• The emphasis in the second section is national.
• The writer calls the nation of Israel to rejoice in God.
• The emphasis in the third section is personal.
• The writer calls his readers to rejoice in what God has done individually for him.

VERSES 18 & 19 COULD EASILY HAVE BEEN OMITTED.

• The thought flow would not have been interrupted, and it would seem as if nothing significant had been left out.
• The writer did insert these verses, so he must have included them to provide a teachable moment.
• What was his big idea, his lesson, his point?
• The writer wanted his readers to understand that, when it comes to prayer, surety follows purity.
• A polluted heart will never have blessed assurance.
• A clean heart facilitates answers to prayer.
• The assurance that you've been heard and that God is “working on it” comes to those who have pursued purity of heart.

Regarding Iniquity (Psa. 66:18 (Part 1)

INTRODUCTION:

• Sunday, we began a new sermon series called “Whack!”
• Can you remember a time when you whacked your head?
• Perhaps you said afterward, “That wasn't a very intelligent thing to do!”
• Yeah, you know where this is going.
• It wasn't too long before you whacked your head again during the same project.
• Evidently, some of us are slow learners. Hey, I'm glad I'm not the only one!
• Whacking your head can be frustrating. ( No kidding, right?)
• You told yourself not to do it again and – whack! – you did it again.
• If it weren't for the fact your head was already hurting, you would have smacked yourself due to frustration.
•  During this series, we will compare unanswered prayer to whacking our heads.
• If you've ever prayed for something for a long time, you know what I'm talking about – especially if that request was crucial.
• You prayed your heart out and nothing happened.
• You even came to the prayer meeting, cried out to God and, still, nothing.
• You met with one or two other people and regularly prayed together concerning your request and theirs. 
• That's right – once again, nothing.
• Prayer can be quite rewarding, but sometimes prayer can seem frustrating.
• It's as if each time you pray, all you're doing is whacking your head against the wall.
• You might feel as if you're wasting your time.
• You think, “Maybe my prayers never got beyond the ceiling.”
• It's frustrating when you want to connect your prayers to GPS.
• People I know would never intentionally whack their heads.
• Hey, if you do that, please get some help!
• I can refer you to someone.
• Sometimes you do, however, sabotage your prayers.
• Can you hear it – “Whack!”
• You feel like the fly buzzing at the window.
• You can see the other side, but you can't get there.
• Whack! Whack! Whack!
• During the series, we will consider three things that sabotage or frustrate your prayers.
• The first hindrance is the hindrance of sin.
• More specifically, it is the hindrance of iniquity (wickedness).