What Do You Hope to Get Out of Your Faith?

What do you hope to get out of Christianity? What is the practical, tangible benefit of your faith?

I used to keep a journal. And while it certainly served as an insight into what was going on in my life at the time, what’s really interesting is the insight it gives into the state of my soul at the time. There are stretches where I was writing more regularly and consistently – sometimes because we moved to Bulgaria and I thought that was noteworthy, but other times because I was struggling with something spiritually. At the time, I thought I was just pouring my heart out to get these thoughts off my chest. When I go back and look at them now, I see that what I was really doing was asking for divine intervention for behavioural modification. I was struggling with sin. I was asking God to help me break my sinful habits. And, as good as that was for me to do, looking back on it now, I can see that while I was on the right track, I was still miles away from where I needed to be.

My grandpa was a good man. There’s a story I remember from later on in his life, only a couple years before he died. My aunt was making him lunch and before they ate, they prayed together. My aunt had been doing this almost every day for months, and after Grandpa was done praying, she shared an observation with him. She said, “Dad, I notice that every time you ask God for something, you say, ‘Lord, help me with ______.’ You know you can just pray to God to solve your problem for you, right?”

Grandpa lived through the Great Depression. Grandpa had a great work ethic. So when my aunt said that to him, he paused, looked at her, and said, “I never thought about it that way.”

To me, whether you’re an 86-year-old man or an 11-year-old boy, what I’ve learned is that you can be so close and yet so far away at the same time. I would never fault any of you if you prayed to God to change your behaviour. I would never fault any of you if you asked God for help in your prayers. But if that’s all you’re looking for from the Lord, then you reassess what you think your problem is. Your problem in life is not that you’ve slipped into bad habits. Your problem in life is not that you need a little help from time to time. David helps us understand what our real problem is in Psalm 51:

Create in me a pure heart, O God,
    and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me from your presence
    or take your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation
    and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. (Psalm 51:10-12)

What was David’s problem? Was it that his palace overlooked Bathsheba’s house? If that were the case, would his problem have been solved by putting up a privacy shade on his balcony? Would the problem have been solved if he had moved, so that his palace wasn’t within eyesight of Bathsheba’s rooftop? Would his problem have been solved if he had left Jerusalem and gone to war with his army like he should have done to begin with?

Any one of those options could have prevented David from sleeping with Bathsheba, in which case she wouldn’t have gotten pregnant, David wouldn’t have called Uriah home to try to cover up his mistake, and Uriah wouldn’t have returned to the frontlines carrying orders for his own murder. But would any of those options have solved David’s problem?

What was David’s problem? It was his heart. David could have set up all the obstacles and barriers to sin that he wanted, but if his heart wasn’t right, he would have just found another way to sin. Put up a privacy shade? Peek around it or through it or out another window. Move the palace? Gawk at someone else’s rooftop. Go to war? Sin somewhere else, with someone else, doing something else.

David’s problem was his heart, and no amount of behavioural modification was going to change that. David’s problem was his heart, and no amount of spiritual strength training or divine hand holding was going to get that heart strong enough that it wouldn’t even be tempted by the sins of its past. That’s not how sin works, and our hearts are worse than weak. Moses put it this way:

Every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. (Genesis 6:5)

These words don’t just apply to the people of Noah’s day, or the residents of Sodom and Gomorrah, or the people of Nineveh. They apply to all of us. Our hearts are inclined toward evil all the time. That’s our natural inclination, i.e. our default setting. You drop a human being in any situation and they’re going to trend toward the wrong choice – the sinful one. It’s an uphill battle to do anything right.

We need more than behavioural modification. We need more than a helping hand or a leg up from time to time. We need spiritual transformation. Otherwise we risk what David fears here:

Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. (Psalm 51:11)

I don’t know that I realized it 20-30 years ago when I used to keep a journal, but this was the feeling in my heart that caused me to write down my sin; I felt the distance that my sin created between me and my God. I don’t know that Grandpa would have put it into so many words, but I have a feeling that this is what he was feeling that inspired him to ask for God’s help; he knew that he was helpless without him.

We need more than behavioural modification. We need more than a helping hand or a leg up from time to time. We need spiritual transformation. And the only person who can accomplish that is not you – not me, not some spiritual guru – it’s our God.

That’s why David prays the way he does. He doesn’t ask God to change his circumstance. He asks God to change his heart. He doesn’t ask God to help him be a better person. He asks God to give him a better spirit. It starts in here. This is where the problem was. But this is also where God applies the solution:

Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. (Psalm 51:12)

God saved you from your sin. He sent his Son to die for your sin, so that he could remove it from you forever; so that he could do all those things we rejoiced in last week – wash you whiter than snow; cause your crushed bones to rejoice; blot out all your transgressions.

God saved you from your sin, and he did it without your help. Jesus wasn’t sent to earth just to get you across the finish line. He ran your race for you and won the victory for you too. In the same way, God does all the work of purifying your heart and transforming your soul. He doesn’t take his Holy Spirit from you. He sends that Holy Spirit into your heart every time you hear his word to work his will inside of you – to ever-so-slowly change your desires from a craving for sin to an appetite for godliness, to give you a solid foundation of faith so you can be steadfast in your life, to restore joy inside of you (instead of fear or anxiety or depression or despair), to sustain you through whatever trial or temptation you face.

That’s what you get to hope to get out of Christianity. That is the practical, tangible benefit of your faith. It’s a God who loves you and forgives you and even continues to work inside of you by his Holy Spirit, not to modify your behaviour or help you out – those things will follow – but to transform your soul into a steadfast, willing, joy-filled spirit because of his salvation. Amen.

1 Corinthians 10:1-13

1For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers and sisters, that our ancestors were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. 2They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. 3They all ate the same spiritual food 4and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. 5Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered in the wilderness.
6Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did. 7Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written: “The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry.” 8We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did—and in one day twenty-three thousand of them died. 9We should not test Christ, as some of them did—and were killed by snakes. 10And do not grumble, as some of them did—and were killed by the destroying angel.
11These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the culmination of the ages has come. 12So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! 13No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.

Don’t Fall - Stand Firm!

Upwards of 100,000 people died – 39,000 by disease, 3,000 by the sword, 250 by fire, and several hundreds, if not thousands more by poison and earthquake. And the worst part? It was entirely preventable.

While the Israelites camped at the foot of Mt. Sinai, they grew impatient and denied that the God inside the cloud on the top of the mountain was their deliverer. Instead, they fashioned an idol like the ones they had seen in Egypt and chose to worship it instead. And as a result, 3,000 people were killed by the sword, and many more died by plague.

When the Israelites set up camp near Moab, they succumbed to adultery. Moses puts it this way:

The men began to indulge in sexual immorality with Moabite women who invited them to the sacrifices of their gods.[1]

Not only had the Israelites broken faith with their lawful wives, but they broke faith with their God yet again. And as a result, more than 23,000 people died by yet another plague.

Throughout their wanderings, the people tested God’s patience again and again by grumbling against him. Paul only cites two examples. In one, they complained that there wasn’t enough variety in their diet and that they would have rather died in the labour camps of the Egyptian slave drivers than have to eat one more meal of manna and quail. And as a result “many” died when God sent poisonous snakes to bite them.

Korah, Dathan and Abiram stirred up a rebellion against Moses and his leadership. The entire clan of Korah was swallowed up by a massive earthquake. Fire came from the Lord and consumed 250 priests who pitted themselves against Moses and Aaron. And 14,000 more died by still yet another plague.

Up to 100,000 dead – and it all could have been prevented. These people had all the advantages. Paul lists them for us:

Our ancestors were all under the cloud.
They all passed through the sea.
They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea.
They all ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual drink.

The cloud was the visible, physical presence of God that went with them every day for 40 years. They passed through the waters of the Red Sea on dry ground to escape Pharaoh’s army. They were blessed to have Moses to speak to God on their behalf and receive from him answers to their prayers. They all received manna and quail every day for 40 years. They didn’t have to plant gardens or hunt game or even go to a grocery store. All the food they needed showed up on the ground outside their tents twice a day.

They had everything they needed to stay true to the Lord, to follow the instructions he had given them for their lives, to praise and thank him for all his daily graces instead of grumbling and complaining about hypothetically greener grass somewhere else. And so do you.

That’s the point here, isn’t it? It’s not for us to shake our heads at the Israelites. It’s to listen when Paul says:

These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us... So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall![2]

Do you think you’re standing firm? Why? Because you’re baptized? Because you grew up a believer? Because you made the conscious, informed decision later in life to follow the Lord? Because of everything you know? Christian, the Israelites had even more reason to believe that they were standing on solid ground – God’s “Chosen People,” “Special Possession,” constant recipients of his divine intervention. And they fell. What’s stopping you?

Do you see the spiritual danger that surrounds you? Are you overconfident in your own ability to resist temptation?

What’s the worst that could go wrong between two people in love quietly watching a movie alone together? Or maybe you’re by yourself, and the movie’s rated M, but you can handle it, right? So what if my friends get a little chatty? It’s gossip, but it’s not capital-G gossip; it’s harmless. I know I get a little heated when I read the news and who cares if I end up saying negative things about the authorities? They deserve it! It’s just social media. It makes me feel lousy about my life; makes me wish mine looked more like someone else’s. But it’s just pictures and videos.

Christian – you who are going to pray “lead us not into temptation” in a few minutes – don’t lead yourself into temptation. Don’t get cocky in the quality of your faith. If you think you’re standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall. Yeah, the Israelites messed up something embarrassing, but so do you and so do I:

No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind.[3]

We live in the same world they did. We’re made of the same stuff they were. We’re not above them. We’re just like them. And if we’re willing to open our minds and humble our hearts, we’ll admit that we’re just as faithless as they were. We may not face plague, fire or the sword. But the wages for our sin is the same for them and every other sinner who has walked this earth – death. That’s what sinners deserve from the God they sin against.

That’s what we deserve, but that’s not what we receive. Instead, God sends us warnings – like this one from the Apostle Paul: Wake up! Pay attention! If you think you’re standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! God wants you to open your eyes and see your spiritual danger. He wants you to open your eyes and see your salvation.

Just four little words:

And God is faithful.[4]

Why? To us? To sinners who reject him, ignore him, grumble and complain against him? Yes, to you. God is faithful to you. It doesn’t make sense to our puny brains. If anyone treated us the way we treat God, we’d wash our hands of them. We wouldn’t want to see them again. But that’s not how God treats you, and we can see it in the way he treated the Israelites.

Most of the Israelites bowed down to the golden calf and then got up to indulge in revelry. But only 3,000 died – that’s less than half of one percent of the total population – because Moses interceded and pleaded for God’s mercy, which he gave them. The grumbling and complaining just didn’t stop, and God did send poisonous snakes to bite and kill “many” in Israel, but it was God who told Moses to fashion a bronze snake and lift it on a pole, and promised that whoever looked at it in faith would be saved. It was more than a line in the sand to test their faith. It was a promise of our Saviour:

Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.[5]

God is faithful. God is patient. He has not written you off. He does not treat you as your sins deserve. He loves you and forgives you. He sent his Son to save you. And he’s not as far away as he sometimes feels.

We don’t get to look up to the top of a mountain that’s within sight every day and see the visible presence of God there. We have something better. We get to hear his voice as often as we want, because he’s put his Word at our fingertips:

“These were written down for us.”[6]

We haven’t been privileged to walk across an active seabed on dry ground before God destroys the enemies pursuing us. We have something better. God paved the way to heaven for us – he made the impossible possible – and destroyed our enemies in the process. Not Pharaoh or an army of chariots. Something far more deadly. Sin, death, and the devil. They can’t touch us because of Jesus.

We haven’t been baptized into Moses with a leader who gets to talk with God face to face on our behalf. We have something better. We’ve been baptized into Christ who gives us direct access to our Father in heaven.

We haven’t tasted manna or quail. We have something better. The body and blood of Jesus, given and poured out for you for the forgiveness of your sins.

God is faithful. God is gracious. He is always present and always patient and he continues to pour out his love on us every day. And not least of all by the last promise he makes us:

He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.[7]

Christian, beware! God will let you be tempted. We don’t get to skate by on autopilot because Jesus won our salvation for us. We still have to try. But, he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. He will provide a way out.

I’m amazed at how obvious it can be sometimes. A perfectly timed phone call, just as you were about to careen headlong into sin. A knock on the door. An ad break or the internet going out. Something to disrupt you long enough to break the spell and give you the opportunity to think about what you were just about to do.

Most of the time it’s more subtle than that. It’s the memory of a Sunday School lesson you had decades ago that spoke to the exact circumstance you’re facing right now. The friendship of a fellow Christian whose opinion you value and whom you wouldn’t want to disappoint. The devotion you had that morning that opened the door of your heart to the Holy Spirit so he could fill you with faith and guide you in life, if you’re willing to listen.

God will never put you in a position where sin is the only option. There will always be an escape hatch. You always have a choice. So be aware. Go through life with both eyes open – to the spiritual dangers around you, but most of all to the constant presence, patience and faithfulness of our God, who loved you and saved you through Jesus our Saviour. Amen.

[1] Numbers 25:1,2

[2] 1 Corinthians 10:11,12

[3] 1 Corinthians 10:13

[4] 1 Corinthians 10:13

[5] John 3:14

[6] 1 Corinthians 10:11

[7] 1 Corinthians 10:13