Testing and Teaching: Judges 2:20-3:6

Four years ago, my wife began her career as a high school English teacher. As a result, we see education from a unique perspective. We have had many discussions on teaching, testing, grading, and classroom management. Several times standardized testing has been a discussion.  

A standardized test comprises a set of common questions for students to answer with the purpose of assessment.  For example, the reading part of the test will help teachers understand what the reading level of a certain grade is at the time of the test.  The results enable them to adjust what they are teaching so that the students can improve on a particular subject. When I was in school, standardized tests didn’t bother as much as tests that determined my grade. 

During my college and seminary days, I had professors that tested every class. I will confess, I spent most of my time cramming for a test about fifteen minutes before class. I didn’t really enjoy tests, but I understood their purpose. If a professor or teacher didn’t test, I don’t believe I would pay attention unless the subject captivated my attention. Tests also reminded me that the class has purpose and meaning.  

If you think about it, we can’t limit teaching and testing to the realm of education only. Teaching and testing characterize every aspect of life. This is especially true of the Christian life.  Open your Bible, Old and New Testaments, and you will find God causes and allows teaching and testing in the journey of faith. In the believer's life teaching and testing that takes place daily.  

The daily teaching and testing experienced by believers are not purposeless or meaningless. If they were, God would come across as a cruel God. We find a highly explicit text concerning the purpose and meaning of such experiences in chapters two and three of the book of Judges. Unfortunately, the text takes place in a period of Israel’s history that reveals the apostasy of God’s people repeatedly.    

The book of Judges comprises two introductions. The first introduction starts at verse one of chapter one and ends at verse five of chapter five. The second introduction begins at verse six of chapter two and ends with verse six of chapter three. Why two introductions? The writer introduces the book from two perspectives. The first is from the perspective of Israel, and the second from the perspective of God.  

From God’s perspective, we are able to see the outline of the book of Judges. It’s a downward spiral that begins with God’s people turning from God, followed by God’s judgment upon his people, resulting in God’s people crying out, and God answering the cries with mercy by providing a judge to deliver them. This pattern runs to the end of the book.  Interestingly, this pattern of God’s judgment of mercy is best understood when we look at the cross of Jesus Christ, for it shows the judgment and mercy of God in the death of Jesus Christ.  

In setting the context of our text, we will need to understand God’s people have entered the Promise Land through the leadership of Joshua.  Unfortunately, they did not remove all the inhabitants of the land, as God commanded, resulting in God allowing the inhabitants to live among the Israelites. Leaving the inhabitants was the consequence of their sin. You could say that their sin became their reward.  God would not waste this tragedy. He determined to use the enemy in the land to test and teach his people. 

Notice verses twenty through twenty-two of the second chapter of Judges, “So the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he said, Because this people have transgressed my covenant that I commanded their fathers and have not obeyed my voice, I will no longer drive out before them any of the nations that Joshua left when he died, in order to test Israel by them.” God will use the inhabitants to test Israel. Again in verse one of chapter three, “Now these are the nations that the Lord left, to test Israel by them.” And again in verse four, “They were for the testing of Israel.” 

How do the enemies of ancient Israel in the Promise Land translate into our modern-day experiences? Every day, we face enemies that attack our faith, our finances, our families, our relationships, our courage, and the list goes on and on.  These enemies come to invade our lives from the inside, the outside, and the unseen, usually through circumstances, situations, and struggles, which God uses for teaching and testing. Therefore, it is important for us to understand these enemies and their purpose and meaning in our lives. As we look at the chosen passage, we notice how the Lord tests us to teach us. 

The Lord tests us to teach us.  

In verse one of chapter three, we read, “Now these are the nations that the Lord left, to test Israel by them, that is all in Israel who had not experienced all the wars in Canaan. It was only in order that the generations of the people of Israel might know war, to teach war to those who had not known it before.”  We see some purpose for tests in these two verses.  There is a connection between “test,” and “know.”  Testing is used to teach.  Here, the lesson was about how to fight in a war.  

However, the lessons taught were more than just tactical procedures for war. I’m reminded of the four-week training that they required me to take when I became a chaplain in the correctional setting. I spent the time learning how to defend myself when a situation called for it. The greatest lesson I learned is the fact that I’m a chaplain, and if a riot breaks out in the prison, I’m running.  The lessons were for protection only, and a way for the state to avoid lawsuits.  God’s training for war was much more theological than tactical.  What God wanted to know from the wars with the inhabitants was a greater knowledge of his person.  

His person

By this, I mean his character and nature.  God left in the land as a judgment for the Israelites’ disobedience.  Every war they fought with these inhabitants would be a reminder of God’s judgment upon their sin. The reason God judged their sin is his holy nature.  

God is without sin, holy. Therefore, he must deal with sin. Tests that come as discipline for sin remind us of God’s holy nature. We never sin and get away with it. God disciplines his children, which is a display of his loving nature.  

God disciplines his children for our own holiness. You might be one of those parents that don’t discipline your children, but God is not. If you don’t discipline your child can you say you love your child? God loves his children, and he disciplines his children because he loves them.  God’s love puts our ultimate and greatest good at the top of his agenda.  God tests us so we can know his nature and character, but God is not wanting us to have just head knowledge of who he is. No, at the heart of these tests is God’s desire to teach us about his presence.  

His presence

God’s desire for his children is a close and personal relationship with them. It is all about relationships and constantly walking and enjoying his presence. God was to teach us so we can know, experientially, his presence in our lives. Some of the greatest tests God has allowed me to experience have been the greatest moments of experiencing his tangible presence in my life. Yes, he teaches us to know him more intimately through the invasions of the inside, outside, and unseen enemies in our lives.  And while we experience his presence, we also experience his power.   

His power

God wanted Israel to know war, not in the traditional tactical way, but his way.  When we fight God’s fight we don’t rely on our own power, but his power.  We don’t trust in our abilities, but his abilities. God allows tests to teach us to trust in his power to overcome the trials that the test brings.   

When Pharaoh and the Egyptian army had Moses and the Israelites up against the Red Sea, God said, “The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.” Trust the Lord, for it is his fight and his battle. 

When an elite army came against King Jehoshaphat and Juda, the king and Judah poured out their hearts to God. There was no way they could beat this army with their own resources or resolve. They cried out to God, and he told them to stand firm and watch.  The next morning, Jehoshaphat and his army stood before the enemy and worshiped, and while they worshiped God destroyed the army.  

We learn through tests we don’t fight with our own abilities or strengths but by the power of God.  We learn to cast our concerns on the Lord and watch him sustain us, knowing that he will not allow his children to stumble. We learn through tests that we when battles not by might, nor by power, but by the Spirit of the Lord.  

I wonder how many times God has brought events into my life for the purpose of teaching me something? Do I look at teachable moments as chance, or do I see them from the providential hand of God?  I imagine when I stand before God and he replays my life he will probably show me some teachable moments that I missed.  

As a father, I have learned that everything I try to teach my children won’t always be accepted by them. The many times I have warned them of a dead-end road, but they took it anyway.  It causes me to sit back and think about my relationship with the Lord, and I imagine he feels the same way I do when I miss his teachable moments he brings through tests, and how I try to do things in my flesh, and not his power. 

How is God working in your life? What methods is he using to test and teach? Are you learning more about his person, his presence, and his power? If we are not careful, we will miss out on a teachable moment that God uses for our ultimate good.  Next, we notice how the Lord tests us to assess us.  

The Lord tests us to assess us. 

Earlier, I spoke about standardized testing and how its purpose is to assess the students.  Likewise, God tests us to assess us, not for himself, he already knows what’s in us, but for ourselves.  The one thing God wants to assess is our allegiance to him. 

Allegiance 

In chapter two, verse twenty-two, we read, “in order to test Israel by them, whether they will take care to walk in the way of the Lord as their fathers did, or not.” Notice also in chapter three, verse four, “They were for the testing of Israel, to know whether Israel would obey the commandments of the Lord, which he commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses.” What does God want from us? He wants obedience, faithfulness to our relationship with him.

True worship of God demands exclusive allegiance.  It’s amazing how tests will often reveal where our trust lives. When we lose our paycheck, where is our trust? When a pandemic hits, where is our trust? It’s stunning how a test reveals where our allegiance lies. Do we trust in God’s promises? Or do we act like spiritual illiterates? Do we believe God exists and believe in his promises? Or do we act as a functional atheist?   Tests have a way of showing where our allegiance is.  

Unfortunately, verses five and six reveal the Israelites failed to pass the test. Instead of fighting the enemy, they slept with the enemy.  Literally, they intermarried with the inhabitants and started serving their gods.  They received a big F. 

Our stories don’t have to end the same way. In fact, there is another test found in the Old Testament, one passed with flying colors. It’s found in Genesis chapter twenty-two, verse one, “After these things God tested Abraham and said, “Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” He said, “Take you son, you only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains on which I shall tell you.” 

What a test! God wanted Abraham to take the promised child, Isaac, and offer him up as a burnt offering. The rest of the chapter reveals that he passed the test. And because of his exclusive allegiance to God, the Lord provided a ram to replace Isaac as the burnt offering.  He passed the assessment.  How? Abraham in obedience trusted the Lord and drew upon the resources of his almighty love.  

How can we pass the tests that come our way every day? Daily, we have to take our lives to the altar of God and offer them up to God as a holy and acceptable sacrifice to him, giving him our full allegiance. When we do, God will bless us beyond what we ever think or imagine.   

Recently, I observed an interaction between a little girl, around five years old, and her father.  The girl wanted to carry an enormous box.  She said, “Daddy, I want to carry the box.” She could pick it up, but it was too big for her to walk with. Her father responds, “No, you will fall trying to carry it.” She kept on insisting, saying that she had a plan.  The father gave in and she picked up the box.  She then told her father, “Okay daddy, now you carry me.”  

God, doesn't just want to take our burdens. No, he wants to carry us and give us all we need from his resources. All we have to do is give our allegiance to him.   Will you come to the altar today? 

   

Walking in the Dark: Isaiah 50:10-11

In the Summer of 2007, God introduced me to a term I was unfamiliar with. Looking back, it was something I prayed for but didn’t fully grasp what I was praying. The prayer, “Lord, do whatever it takes to make me more like you.” The answer, “The dark night of the soul.” The answer came not from a class or a book, but through personal experience.  

If you have ever gone through a season of spiritual dryness and darkness when God seemed silent and far away no matter how hard you tried to reconnect, then you have experienced a “dark night” experience.  This experience can be long and hard, especially for the many Christians who don’t understand it or how to handle it. 

Since the summer of 2007, I have experienced more occasions of this dark season, the most recent being within the last five years. And each season seemed darker than the season before. I would love to tell you that each season is easier to handle and understand than the previous, but that’s not the case at all.  We find the reason in God’s purpose for the experience. 

The Lord uses the dark night of the soul experience to grow us and conform us into the image of his Son.  It makes us more aware of his grace and mercy, while also revealing sinful patterns and beliefs that hinder our growth.  As painful as the experience can be, it is one of the prominent ways God grows us in holiness and wholeness.  

The dark night experience for God’s people is inevitable.  You find it in the scriptures. Read the prayers in the book of Psalms and you will find King David struggling with this season. The first verse of Psalm thirteen reads, “How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?” Read the biographies and testimonies of Christians throughout history and you will find the same inevitable experiences.   

The dark night is also unexpected. And because it is unexpected, many of God’s people don’t understand it or know exactly how to handle it.  So, what do we do when the Lord knocks the props out from under us and caused the lights to go out?  The prophet Isaiah gives great truths for walking through the dark.    

In the fiftieth chapter of Isaiah, we find two verses, nine and ten, talking about the inevitable and unexpected experience of walking through the darkness, “Who among you fears the Lord and obeys the voice of his servant? Let him who walks in darkness and has no light trust in the name of the Lord and rely on his God. Behold, all you who kindle a fire, who equip yourselves with burning torches! Walk by the light of your fire, and by the torches that you have kindled! This you have from my hand: you shall lie down in torment.”  

The Hebrew construct of verse ten suggests that the person who fears God and obeys his voice is the one who continues to trust in and rely on the Lord, even though he is walking through a time of darkness.  In fact, the verse implies that we know the person following God more, not by how they walk in the light, but in the darkness. What do we know about the person following God in darkness First, we know that they keep walking when the lights go out.  

Keep walking when the lights go out and you can’t see.

One Sunday morning early, during my first pastorate, I received a knock at the door of the parsonage, waking me up from my sleep. It was a church member letting me know that the neighbor’s son across the street passed away in an automobile accident.  He was driving down an unlit country road, and his lights went out. Instead of stopping, he tried to navigate the road, causing him to miss a curve and rolling his truck.  In a situation like this, it is wise to stop and pullover. It is the right thing to do.  

However, what is true of the physical realm is not for the spiritual. You should, you must stop going in the physical ring, but it is a terrible mistake to stop walking in the spiritual realm.  

Think about it. When darkness comes upon us and there is no light, you're not sure where you are going, you're not even sure where you are.  You can’t see the obstacles in front of you.  You have no spiritual feeling, and you can’t see what God is doing. This is not the time to stop.  You must keep walking with the Lord through the darkness.   

The man or woman that fears the Lord and obeys the Lord doesn’t stop walking with the Lord because there is no light.  They keep on walking.  They keep on obeying.  They keep on seeking.  They keep on praying.  They keep on giving.  They keep on witnessing. They keep on keeping on even though it’s dark.  

One of my dear friends, who also served on staff in my last pastorate, is a licensed pilot. One day we were talking about the training he went through to secure his license.  It intrigued me when he told me about learning to fly by the instruments, something that every pilot must learn before they receive their license.  When a pilot flies into darkness, such as a dark cloud, he will lose his points of reference. It becomes very dangerous to trust in one’s physical perception. Even though it might feel like he is flying straight, he could descend to the ground, not knowing it. He must learn to read and trust the instruments, and not his thoughts or feelings.  

In the same manner, the Christian must learn to follow the instruments of God’s word when walking through the darkness. We see this truth in verse ten, “Who among you fears the Lord and obeys the voice of his servant?” The servant that Isaiah is referring to is the servant in the previous verses, four through nine.  The servant of the previous verses is Jesus. We keep walking even though it’s dark because we are looking to the instruments of God’s word and it becomes the lamp unto our feet, and light for our path.  Second, people who follow God in the darkness know that they should not make their own light to dispel the darkness.

Don’t make your own light to dispel the darkness. 

This second point is the most important point you need to grasp today because it is a temptation that occurs when we discover ourselves in the dark.  When the lights go out at my house, the first thing I do is look for the light. I light candles and look for flashlights.  However, when the lights go out in our walk with God, the last thing we want to do is to make our own light.  Isaiah says in verse eleven, “Behold, all you who kindle a fire, and who equip yourselves with burning torches! Walk by the light of your fire, and by the torches that you have kindled! This you have from my hand: you shall lie down in torment.” The Living Bible says, “But see here, you who live in your own light, and warm yourselves from your own fires and not from God’s; you will live among sorrows.”  

The Lord is telling us we make an enormous mistake when we try to make our own light.  Why? It’s a mistake because we are trying to manufacture our own light to fulfill the purpose of God in our life.  We do not want to make our own light.  

First, when we make our own light we don’t realize that God has allowed the darkness in our lives.  Darkness does not dispel light. It is light that dispels darkness. If it is dark in our experience it on account that God has allowed that darkness into our lives.  If you are walking with the Lord and darkness comes upon your walk, it’s because the Lord has removed the light.  

When God made the first day in the book of Genesis, he made day and night. The night is as much from God as in the day. What I find fascinating that there are some things you can’t see unless it’s dark, things like the moon and stars. Likewise, in the spiritual realm, there are things you can’t see unless the lights go out.   

Second, when we make our own light to replace God’s it only makes things worse.  The Living Bible says making our own light will cause you to, “live among sorrows.”  I could pull out a lengthy list of sorrows in my life that resulted from me making my light to replace God’s. But I believe it would have a greater impact if we turned to the myriad of examples in the scriptures. 

Three chapters into the book of Genesis and you will find Adam and Eve making their own light because they wanted to “be like God.”  All of humanity has been living in the sorrows of that mistake.  

Abraham received the promise of a child from God, one that he gladly believed in.  However, when the darkness of waiting on God to fulfill the promise was more than he and Sarah could bear, they lit their own light and the result was Ishmael. Again, a sorrow we still experience to this very day.   

Moses tried to light his own light when he killed the Egyptian soldier, causing him to flee for his life, and setting the deliverance of God back forty years.  And there are many more examples, but I believe this proves the point. Don’t make your own light to dispel the darkness.  It will only lead to sorrow.  Third, the person walking in the dark with God trust and relies on Jesus in the dark.

Trust and rely on Jesus in the dark.  

In verse ten it says, “trust in the name of the Lord and rely on his God.”  When we trust and rely on the Lord in the darkness, we are following the Lord’s example. Notice verse six in this same chapter, “I gave my back to those who strike, and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard; I hid not my face from disgrace and spitting.”  This is a prophecy that was fulfilled at the crucifixion of Jesus. This is the darkest moment of Christ’s life. What did Jesus do? He trusted God to help him and contend for him. He didn’t take things into his own hands but entrusted himself to the Father.    

Jesus is the author and perfector of our faith. He has gone before us and conquered the dark night of the soul.  Therefore, we should trust and rely on him when it’s dark and we can’t see. 

The Hebrew word translated “rely on” can also translate “stay.” It means to lean for support. The person who relies on is God leans on him for support.  The root of that word is found in Psalm twenty-three, verse four, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me, your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” They translate the root word, “comfort.” The rod and staff hold me up. They encourage me. They support me. When we are in the darkness, we need a rod and staff to support us, and that rod and staff is Jesus.   

Some things you can only see in the darkness. When you are in the darkness, you need someone to support you as you walk, and that someone is Jesus.  One person has said, “you don’t know how much you need Jesus until Jesus is all you have.” Interestingly, we can see Jesus more in the dark than we can when we are in the light.  

Every spring, when we are working in the yard and flowerbeds, my wife reminds me of a mistake I made a few years ago. I try to forget about it, but she always reminds me I killed one of her favorite flowers, the moonflower.  The moonflower got its name because the beautiful white or purple tubular flower blooms at night and remains open until the morning light touches the flower.  The beauty of the moonflower is dependant upon the darkness of night.  

Much of the fruit of our spiritual life is dependant upon the darkness of night. Therefore, it is important to keep walking with God when the lights go out and you can’t see what God is doing.  Don’t give in to the temptation of making your own light because you will only regret it. Trust and rely on Jesus. He is the light and support that will keep you going in the right direction.   The darkness of obedience has so much more light than the shining light of leaning on your own understanding.  

In the dark, you’ll find Jesus. When you do, as the old song says, “Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in his wonderful face, and the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of his glory and grace.” 

Discovering the Will of God-Part 1: Sermons from the Book of Ruth

Dr. Patrick Mead

Series: Ruth

Discovering the Will of God – Part 1

Ruth 1:16-17; Jonah 1:14-16; Ruth 2:1-2, 7

Go ahead and take your copy of God's Word and turn to Ruth, chapter 2, as we continue our series called Everyday God. What we're doing is as we study the book of Ruth we're observing God's activity in everyday life. Let me go ahead and give you a heads-up. I don't plan on finishing this outline this morning, so you have to come back next week. Okay? And you don't have to bring it back, because… Some of you will. You can fill it out, but I'll probably expand upon this.

As I typed this sermon out last week, I realized I had enough material for at least an hour-long sermon. I know you probably think I preach an hour already. I really don't. I get close to it, and I had double that amount so I knew we would be in trouble this morning. So I don't plan on finishing this, and I want to expand upon this study. Also, just a reminder I put a little devotional for you on the back, and it ties into what we are doing here in this study this morning from Ruth, chapter 2.

The late George Truett, who was the pastor at First Dallas before Dr. Criswell became pastor… Dr. Criswell followed him and was there for 50 years. George Truett made this statement: To know the will of God is the greatest challenge. To do the will of God is the greatest achievement. As believers in Jesus Christ, those of us who are followers of Christ, our motto should be, "The will of God: nothing more, nothing less, nothing else." You've probably heard that before.

Unfortunately, when it comes to the will of God, at times we Christians can be frustrated and confused. The reason for this frustration, the reason for this confusion, is our lack of understanding concerning this term, "the will of God." For us to really, truly discover the will of God for our lives, we need to understand the different aspects of the will of God.

1. The preceptive will of God. The Bible is full of commands. It's full of precepts that we as God's people are commanded to obey, and we are to obey these commands. We are to obey these precepts. In fact, most of the will of God for your lives is already revealed in the revealed will of God, and it's revealed in the Scriptures.

That's why Paul says, when he says in 2 Timothy, all Scripture is God-breathed and is profitable. It's all you need for salvation. It's all you need to live the Christian life. You find the preceptive will of God in the Word of God, and so to do that you need to understand the Word of God. Let me give you an example.

I know because I am married it is the will of God for me to love my wife as Christ loved the church. That's the preceptive will of God. I know because I am a father and I have children, three daughters, it's my responsibility, it's God's will, that I teach my children in the ways of the Lord. I know from the Scriptures God calls me to be an imitator of Christ. He calls me to be thankful in all circumstances. He calls me to rejoice always. He calls me to pray without ceasing. That is the will of God for my life. That's the will of God for your life, and it's right there in the Bible.

It's the will of God that I walk in the power of the Holy Spirit. It's the will of God that I live a life pleasing to God, walking in a manner worthy of him, that I bear fruit, that I grow in the knowledge of God, that I walk in the power of Holy Spirit, that I give thanks to God who has redeemed me from my sinful condition.

Those are what we consider the preceptive will of God. It's right there in the Bible, and the list goes on and on. You have the preceptive will of God, what you have spelled out for you in the Scriptures. It's not an option how I treat my wife. God says, "Here's my plan for you. You love her as Christ loved the church."

2. The providential will of God. Basically, this speaks of the circumstances we experience that are outside of our control. Much of what we are seeing with Ruth, she's experiencing the providential will of God, and we're going to see that unfold, especially as we go into the second part of this message next week about how God is guiding her steps.

There are things that happen in our lives. Some things are good. Some things are bad. Some things are ugly. They happen. They're outside of our control. God allows us to experience some things. We call that the providential will of God, and our responsibility as believers is to make sure when we find ourselves in a circumstance, no matter what it may be, that we respond in a way that's in accordance with what we just talked about, the preceptive will of God.

For instance, you find yourself in a situation that's outside of your control and somebody has wronged you, but you know, "How am I to respond to them in this circumstance? Well, I have to forgive them as Christ has forgiven me." So we have the preceptive will of God, we have the providential will of God, and here's the third part. Here's where I want to focus on today, because here's where we get really confused, where we really get frustrated, and that is what we consider…

3. God's plan for individuals. Here's where we struggle. I especially think of our young people who are college students. The questions like, "Where am I going to go to college? What job do I take? Is this job the will of God for my life? Where does God want me to serve? Where does God want me to go to church? What church should I go to?" Those are questions, but they're all ultimately a part of what we would consider God's plan for our lives.

I believe this wholeheartedly, that God has a plan for our individual lives, but here's where we really struggle. We kind of get messed up in our thinking. And I say we. I've done it. We know God has a plan for our individual lives. Right? But for some odd reason we think God is hiding it from us. We think, "Well, I have to seek the will of God. God has that plan around here somewhere. Let me find it. Where are you hiding it, God?"

We treat God like a game show host, and God is saying, "I have a plan for you. Is it behind door number one, door number two, or door number three?" as if God is hiding it from us. Do you ever feel like that? We say, "I have to find God's will in this situation. I have to seek God's will in this situation," as if God is messing with us, he's sitting back going, "Ha ha! They can't find their plan." We do that, don't we?

God doesn't do that. Nevertheless, we struggle, and here's why. Unlike the preceptive will of God and the providential will of God, which are clear in the Word of God and in our circumstances, when it comes to God's plan for our lives, where we work, where we go to school, what mate we marry, it's not clear.

Really, the reason it's not clear is really simple. God doesn't tell us his plan for our lives. He doesn't say, "Okay, now that you're a believer, let me just write it all out. Here's everything…" He does not give us insight into the future as it relates to the individual plan for our lives, and that's what we want.

How many of us want it? "Come on, God. Can't you just write it on the wall? Can't you just spell everything that's going to happen to me in my life? Why are you doing this, God? Why don't you put it in a book for me? Why don't you put it into a proposal?" Here is why. God says, "I want you to walk by faith and not by sight."

Do you know what? If God were to give us the plan, the proposal, some of us might go, "No, thank you. I don't like that plan." When I became a believer, even before I surrendered to ministry, just think when I surrendered to ministry if God said, "Okay, here's your plan. Here's everything that's going to happen to you in your life. Here's how I'm going to use you."

If I would've read that plan, there are some things that have happened to me that I would've said, "No, thank you." When I surrendered to ministry, that whole idea about being a pastor was the one thing I told God I was not going to be. "God, I'll do anything. Send me to the ends of the earth, but don't let me be a pastor. No, thank you, God." He didn't tell me I was going to be a pastor, not all at once. He wants us to walk by faith and not by sight.

Can you imagine Joseph, the story in Genesis? He gave him dreams and visions. He really didn't fully understand it, but he says, "Hey, Joseph. Here's the total plan for your life. You're going to be in the palace in Egypt."

"Really?"

"Yeah, but here's how you're going to get there."

"No, thank you."

Here's why we struggle with this whole concept of really knowing God's plan, because God does not say, "Here it all is. I'm going to lay your life out before you." He makes us walk daily with him, and he makes us walk by faith and not by sight. That's why we struggle. Not only do we struggle in this area; we become spooky. I've been spooky in my life. Let me give you a few examples. Maybe even I'll share one of my own.

I'll never forget a lady. She had some extra money. She felt like the Lord wanted her to give it to a ministry in her church, but she didn't know which ministry God was guiding her to. So here's how she discovered the will of God in this matter. She had her closed Bible just like this, and she said, "Lord, would you guide me to the ministry you want to give this money to?" She opened up her eyes, and then she opened up the Bible.

Fortunately for the children's ministry, she happened to land on the gospel where Jesus says, "Let the children alone. Don't hinder them from coming to me." That was a sure sign God wanted her to give to the children's ministry. I'm sure her pastor, after hearing that, wanted her to land on 1 Timothy, chapter 5, where it says, "Honor the elders with double honor, especially those…"

We get spooky. I know of a lady who married later in life, around 43 years old, didn't have any children, and she and her husband were at a missions conference at their church. She really felt God was calling her to the mission field, so she started praying about this. The next day at work one of her coworkers just happened to leave a vacation brochure on her desk.

It was for the Marshall Islands. She thought, "Well, maybe God wants me to go to the Marshall Islands." She goes home, and on the news there's a report coming out of the Marshall Islands. So what does she think? "God must be leading me to the Marshall Islands." Is that how God does it?

Or the young high school student who was walking with Jesus and wanted to do the will of God in his dating. So he concocted a plan. He had a long list of the girls he wanted to ask out, and his plan in discovering the will of God was if he called them and the phone was busy that meant it wasn't God's will for him to ask that girl out. If he called and she wasn't home and the phone just rang, that meant he could ask her out, but he has to wait. Of course, if he called and she answered, that meant it was the will of God for him to ask her out.

Do you see? We get spooky like that. I wish I could say that has never happened to me, but it has. I look back, and you learn from those instances. I'll never forget. It was 2006. I was pastoring in Oklahoma, and one of my mentors, Dr. David Allen, who's now the dean of theology at Southwestern, at the time was pastoring MacArthur Blvd Baptist Church. He was stepping down so he could devote his full time to his new position at Southwestern.

One of my friends came up to me, because he knew Dr. Allen, and he knew I was good friends with him. He said, "Man, you ought to put your name at that church." It's a really good church, has a great history. It's in Irving. From their parking lot you can see the Dallas Cowboy training. It's in Valley Ranch. That was a sign from God. Looking back, now that they're playing, I'm glad it didn't happen, but…

I went home and told Christy, and she says, "No, we'll pray about it." Here's what we did. We said, "Okay." What was happening was within a couple of weeks Dr. Allen was going to come and do a Bible conference for us there in Oklahoma, and she said, "Okay, if he comes and if he says something about it, then we'll do that." That was our criteria. If this happened, then we'll move forward. We'd put in our name at this church.

So we get to the last day of the Bible conference, and we go to dinner with him before it starts. He says, "Hey, I want to ask you something. Would you prayerfully consider letting me submit your name. I'm going to submit yours and somebody else's to MacArthur Blvd Baptist Church."

I thought for a moment, "Oh, this is off. God is all over this." You say, "Well, how did it turn out?" Well, I'm here, right? It got really spooky after that, because I was pretty sure God was moving and leading us there. It got really weird. We got really weird. Everything we saw with MacArthur, all of a sudden, "Man, that's a sign. It's coming."

I'll never forget. I did a graveside for somebody who lived in Irving, and they were being buried in Purcell, Oklahoma. I was doing the graveside, and they gave me something from the funeral. She was a member of MacArthur Blvd Baptist Church. "That's a sign. I'm going to be the pastor there."

We were coming home from vacation, and somewhere in Louisiana there's a MacArthur Road. We thought, "There's another sign." It's pretty spooky, right? Really spooky. We learned a good lesson. Don't go by that stuff. How do we do that? How do we move beyond just being frustrated and struggling and even becoming spooky in trying to understand God's plan for our lives?

Our study here in the book of Ruth really brings us to this second chapter as we look at Ruth and as she is faithfully walking with God. We're going to see it unfold. We're going to see how an everyday God reveals his plan to us as individuals. In fact, what Ruth does is she is a perfect example of what it means to understand and to know and to do the will of God, how to move from that doorway of devastation to dream again.

There are several principles. I'm going to call these steps. We can't get into them all. To be honest with you, I have a lot of personal spooky stories I want to share with you throughout this. Hopefully, you can learn from my spookiness of what not to do. Here's the first thing. If you want to know and discover the will of God for your life…

First, you must have a proper view of God. Go back to verses 16 and 17 of chapter 1, because there we have Ruth's profession of faith. Here's what she says. "But Ruth said, 'Do not urge me to leave you or to return from following you. For where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God. May the Lord do so to me and more also if anything but death parts me from you.'"

The name she uses there is Elohim. "Your Elohim will be my Elohim," but notice what she does in verse 17. "Where you die I will die, and there will I be buried." Then she doesn't say Elohim here. "May the Lord [Yahweh] do so to me and more also if anything but death parts me from you." I imagine some Hebrew scholar is going to say, "Preacher, you're making too much out of this."

I think there's something very, very significant in the fact that you have a young Moabite girl who is not just saying, "Yes, Elohim, God," but she is declaring Yahweh, which was the name for the covenant-keeping God. What I have found is now you have a Gentile who's making a declaration she has placed her faith in Yahweh, the God of Israel.

As I studied this, I found something very significant. I want you to turn over to Jonah, chapter 1. As I studied the use of a Gentile using the name Yahweh, I believe whenever you see the name Yahweh and it's used in context of people, they are people who have a relationship with God. In Jonah, chapter 1, of course, you have Jonah running from God because God told him to go to Nineveh. "Go to Nineveh and pronounce judgment," but he runs from God because Jonah…

Really, Jonah is not just about a disobedient prophet, but it's about the people of Israel failing to do their mission. They were to be a light to the Gentile nations. He didn't want to go to Nineveh. He didn't like the people of Nineveh, and he knew God was gracious and compassionate and if they repented God would relent in the judgment.

So what does he do? He gets on a boat going to Tarshish. He's on a boat with a bunch of Gentile sailors, and he's underneath, down below. The storm comes, and these pagans are frightened for their lives. They're wondering, "What's going on here?" Of course, Jonah says, "Well, I'm a Hebrew, and my God is Yahweh, the Lord."

So they elect, "We're going to throw him off," but I want you to hear what these pagans… Remember these are Gentiles. Here's what they actually pray to God in chapter 1, verse 14. Who's calling out here? It's not Jonah, not the Hebrew here. It is the Gentiles, the pagans. It says, "Therefore they [the sailors] called out to the Lord, 'O Lord [Yahweh]…'" They're not using Elohim here or Adonai. They're using Yahweh.

"'O [Yahweh], let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not on us innocent blood, for you, O [Yahweh], have done as it pleased you.' So they picked up Jonah and hurled him into the sea, and the sea ceased from its raging," and I want you to hear what these men do. See what they do.

"Then the men feared the Lord [Yahweh] exceedingly, and they offered a sacrifice to the Lord [Yahweh] and made vows." Don't be surprised if when we get to heaven you see the sailors who were on the boat with Jonah, because the language they're using is covenant language. Can you believe that? God in Jonah's disobedience leads pagans to faith in Christ.

Do you see? We go back to Ruth. That's why I say this is a profession of faith here in chapter 1. What Ruth is doing is she's saying, "Yahweh is my God. He is the covenant-keeping God," and so she places her faith in God, the God of Israel. I want you to think about the decision she made, because by placing her faith in the God of Israel…

If you remember from last week, Orpah, her sister-in-law, went where the grass was greener. She turned her back on God. She says, "I'll go back to my people. I'm going to go back to my gods," but not Ruth. Here's what Ruth did, and I want you to see what a sacrifice she made, because earthly speaking, humanly speaking, on paper she left her security.

As a widow she left her home. She left Moab. She left her people. She left her many gods, and all she did is say, "Listen. I'm leaving all that security alone. I'm leaving that earthly security, I'm placing my faith in Yahweh, the covenant-keeping God, and I'm going to enjoy his eternal security."

How could she make a decision like that? I'll tell you. She had a proper view of God, that the God of Israel is a faithful God. He keeps his covenant. He's always faithful to his people. Therefore, she was willing to give up earthly security for eternal security. She was a true disciple. She denied herself, and she followed the God of Israel. She followed Yahweh.

You will never discover God's will for your life if you haven't come to a place as a believer to where you're trusting God without any reservation. The only way you can do that is to have a proper view of God. You can't say, "Well, listen, God. I'm going to trust you up to this point, but after this point I'm taking things into my own hands."

No. The Bible says, "Do you want to know the will of God? Do you want him to make your paths straight? Do you want to see him guide you in your life? Here's what you have to do. Trust him with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight." That's what Ruth did. She trusted him.

When you have a proper view of God, you realize God will never ever drop the ball on you, he who did not spare his own Son. Look what he did to save you. He is a faithful God. He is for you. He's not against you. He's always with you, and he will always provide what you need when you need it if you continue to trust in him. Here's what James, chapter 1, verse 5, says.

"If any one of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously without partiality, and he will give it. But let him ask in faith with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave on the sea, tossed about by the wind. For that person should not expect he will receive anything from the Lord because that person is a double-minded man. That person is unstable in all he does." You say, "Well, I'm trying to understand the will of God for my life." It begins with a proper view of God that causes you and leads you to trust him without any reservation.

Secondly, you have to be faithful in the things you can control. As we come to chapter 2, here's what's going to happen in our story. Naomi is actually moving back to the background. Ruth comes to the forefront. She becomes one of the main characters, and in verse 1 we are introduced to another main character, a very important character.

It says in verse 1, chapter 2, "Now Naomi had a relative of her husband's, a worthy man of the clan of Elimelech, whose name was Boaz." We're going to learn more about him in subsequent stories, but let me just say this for this study. What is Boaz? He is an agent of God's grace. I want you to think about this, because I'll expand upon it next week.

Think about all the people God has put into your life, and do you know what you need to see them as? Agents of God's grace. That's what Boaz is. Do you know what? Ruth doesn't know this yet, because she hasn't met Boaz, but Boaz is a part of God's plan for her life. She doesn't know it. Why? Because she does not see into the future, and nor do you.

Here's the one thing she does know. She knows, "I have to be faithful in the things I can control."
She knows, "It's a new day. I have to get up. I have to work. I have to provide. I have to go and provide not only food for myself, but I have to provide for my mother-in-law." So we see that happening.

Look at verse 2. It says, "And Ruth the Moabite said to Naomi, 'Let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain after him in whose sight I shall find favor.' And she said to her, 'Go, my daughter.'" The author wants us to make sure we realize and remember. Don't forget this for one moment. This Ruth is a Moabite. Sure, she's a foreigner but not just any foreigner. She is a Moabite, which means Ruth probably didn't expect to be accepted by the people of Bethlehem. Why? She's a Moabite.

Do you know what? She didn't let that stop her. She got up, and she asked for permission. She says, "Let me go out and glean from the fields. Let me go glean." What she's talking about here is in the Mosaic law God set up a welfare system. In that welfare system he commanded the landowners, "When you harvest, you leave the corners of the land for the people, the orphans, the widows, the foreigners. You leave it for them so they can have food, so we can take care of them." So they would go out and glean.

Do you want to know the difference between an American welfare system and God's welfare system? In God's you actually have to work. They had to go out and work for it. Do you want to eat? You can't sit around. You can't go stand in line at a government… You have to go and work and glean. That's what she did.

What we learn from verse 2 are two things she can control, two things you can control. You can't control the future. You can, but you can't. What you can control which will influence your future will be two things: character and conduct. Those are the two things we see with Ruth. Look at verse 2 again. In my translation it says, "Let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain…" but in the Hebrew it's actually a polite request.

Some of your translations say, "Please let me go." Do you know what that reveals? It reveals a woman who was polite. She was respectful. The very fact that she was respectful to her elders, to her mother-in-law… She was taking care of her mother-in-law. She didn't want her mother-in-law to have to go out and work. Listen. You know she's a godly woman if she's doing that for her mother-in-law. Amen? She is taking care of her mother-in-law. We see a politeness. We see it in her character.

We also see the fact when she says, "Let me go to the field and glean among the ears of grain after him in whose sight I shall find favor," Ruth understood she was dependent upon the favor of the landowner. She says, "Let me go, and maybe possibly a landowner will have mercy, a landowner will have grace upon me." She did not feel entitled one bit. She didn't say, "Hey, I deserve this." No, she said, "If I could just find favor…" That's a woman who has character. She's humble. She's lowly. She's polite, respectful to her elders.

Not only that, she was a hard worker. Listen to what they were saying about her. Go to verse 7, because Boaz shows up and he asks about her. In verse 7 this is what the servants were saying about this Ruth. "She said, 'Please let me glean and gather among the sheaves after the reapers.' So she came, and she has continued from early morning until now, except for a short rest." She was a hard worker.

Ruth didn't know her future. She couldn't, but she knew what she needed to do now. Do you want to know what God's plan for you…? Do you want to discover his will? Do you want to know what college to go to? He may not tell you today, but listen to this. What are you doing now? Be faithful.

You could reword this. Be faithful in what you can control. Or put it this way. Be faithful in the small things. God is not going to tell you your plan. He's going to unfold it as you walk with him daily. So you need to do what you need to do now. You say, "Well, what do I need to do now?" If you are a believer, you need to know the preceptive will of God, and I can guarantee you God wants you to walk with him humbly every day.

He wants you to have a consistent walk with him. He wants you to spend time in the Word of God every day. He wants you to pray. He wants you to worship. He wants you to be a part of a local church. He wants you to make disciples right now. He wants you to use your spiritual gift. He has given you spiritual gifts. He has given you the Holy Spirit. That's what he wants you to do now. He wants you to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit. He wants you to bear fruit. He wants you to grow in the knowledge of God. He wants you to pursue holiness.

Yeah, I know that doesn't help you in terms of, "Where I work or what church I serve in or where I should go, pastor," but what it does do is it begins to open up doors for you. Listen. God is going to look at you and say, "What are you doing now? What are you doing in the present?" I have young people coming to me, "Pastor, it's about time. What does he want me to do?" I always say, "What are you doing now?"

Back in 1998, finishing up my undergraduate, going to go into my master's, I thought, "Well, I'm ready to pastor a church. Okay. Here's what I'm going to do. It's the first of the last semester of my undergraduate. I'm going to start sending out my résumés to churches around the Dallas-Fort Worth area so I can still go to school and finish up my master's."

I started doing that, and do you know what I thought? "In a matter of weeks, I'm going to be a pastor," and I waited and I waited. While I waited, do you know what I did? Nothing. I did my school work and stuff like that, but I wasn't really serving the Lord. I waited and did nothing. Then I had some opportunities that came, but, "No, I can't do that. I'm going to be a pastor." I turned them down.

Then one of my pastor friends came up to me and said, "Hey, I have an opportunity here. It's at a local hospital in Dallas, and what they need is for somebody on Sunday mornings to go and…" This is no joke. "…teach the Bible study in the psychiatric ward." Do you know what I told him? "Hey, no, I can't do it. God has called me to be a pastor."

"Well, what are you doing now?"

"Nothing."

"Don't you think you ought to be faithful in what you can control? Don't you think you ought to be faithful in the small things?"

Yes, God used that to convict me, and so what did I do? I went to teach a Bible study at the psychiatric ward. In hindsight, that's all about God. You go to teach a Bible study in a psychiatric ward, and don't tell me that won't prepare you to be a pastor, because this is what we are. We're a hospital.

Do you know what I started doing? I started preparing sermons, and sometimes I'd have four around a table. Sometimes I would only have one, but that's what God told me to do. You have to be faithful with what you can do now. Here I am dreaming of what he's going to do in the future, and I wasn't doing anything in the present.

Do you want to learn something from Ruth? Listen. Ruth didn't have a clue. She doesn't have a clue, and we do. We see her story unfolding. Really, it all comes down to this, and it gets better next week. You have to be here for next week. It's really this simple. Are you walking with God right now? Are you consistently walking with him? Are you seeking him in prayer and Bible study? Are you being faithful in what you need to do right now in the present?

God is not going to say, "Here's my whole plan for your life." He's just not going to do it, so I want to encourage you today as you try to understand this will-of-God thing for your life. Don't become spooky. I want to ask you this: Are you faithful in the small things? Are you walking consistently with the Lord? Are you allowing Christ to work in you and through you and around you? God will give you opportunities only as you are being faithful in the small things.

Be faithful. What are you doing? I know for some here today the first step of discovering the will of God begins with a personal relationship with Jesus. That was the first step of discovering God's plan for my life. That's his plan for everyone. "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that those who believe in him shall not perish."

It's God's desire if you're here today and you don't know Christ that you know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. It all starts right there, but it doesn't stop. For some of you, you need to start, and you need to trust Christ Jesus. You need to trust in his death, burial, and resurrection and trust him as your Lord and Savior. He will come and live in your life. I'm here to tell you he'll give you life and give it to you more abundantly.

God has a plan for you, and ultimately, that plan is to save you from your sins. He has a plan for your individual life. He does. He's not going to tell it to you all at once, but what you need to do is be faithful. For some that means you need to be a part of a local church. Listen. You have to be a part of a local church. The Bible says that. To be involved and using your gifts and serving the Lord is part of being faithful.

That doesn't stop. I've found nothing in the Bible that says, "Oh, when you get to this age, you don't do anything." I realize some people can only pray, but you continue to pray, because I have a lot of people say, "I can't do this. I can't do that." I understand that, but here's what they say. "I can pray." Do you know what? If you can pray, you can be involved in the most important ministry of the church. Be faithful in what you can do now. Let's pray.

If you're here this morning, and you do not know Christ Jesus as your Lord and Savior, it's God's plan that you trust him. It's God's plan that you know him in a personal relationship. In a moment after this prayer we're going to have a time of invitation. Will you trust Jesus Christ today? For some of you that means you become a part of this fellowship, you become a part of our church through membership.

Father, we just pray that you have your way this morning. We thank you for your Word. We thank you that you have a plan for us. God, help us to be faithful in the things we can control. In Jesus' name, amen.

Constructive Criticism

Over the years I have had unsolicited feedback concerning my sermons, and some have been memorable, to say the least. The man who shook my hand after the service and said, "I thought you would never shut up" is definitely at the top of the memorable list.  The visitor who, between services, decided to tell me that my sermon was the worst he ever heard. He was a retired minister.  The church member that had my wife and me over for dinner to kindly tell me that I needed more humor. And then there's the letter I received after a church member moved away to basically tell me my sermons where to long.

Honestly, I initially didn't receive this criticism too well. But stumbling upon it six years later, I think it's not bad advice. So let me share his constructive criticism with you.

Brother Patrick,

            I hope this correspondence finds you doing well today.

            I am writing because I desire to follow where I am led by the spirit (though I would find it easier to not do this ☺).  I hope that as you read this you will view this positively as constructive feedback.  If you are not in the mood or mindset to deal with this, by all means, toss it away.  This is not intended to make you feel bad. 

            First the good stuff:  You have a wife that supports you passionately and children that look up to you.  That is a good indication that you are truly a good man and not just putting on a show.  I know you are proud of them.

            You have excellent speaking qualities, specifically, you have the good tonal quality (I’ve always wanted to sound like James Earl Jones myself but alas it is not so ☺) which means you are easy to hear, you have good pronunciation, enunciation, and inflection and you articulate well.  Feel good about this as well, not all public speakers have these qualities.  In your sermons, you also have good points with a clear understanding of those points you want to drive home.

            Now for the constructive feedback... Patrick you seem to have a proliferation of

verbiage surrounding those good points you want to drive home resulting in an excess of supporting conversation.  Please let me say this is not a complaint of time or duration (though this can sometimes be received back as time complaints).  And I know you have sometimes joked about your sermon lengths in a self-deprecating way (There is always some truth in humor and it is good to laugh at ourselves sometimes).  Let me put it this way, think about your sermon as a cake, the meat of the sermon are the key points and your supporting conversation is the icing.  You have a really good cake ☺.  I believe you have a really thick icing.  While some folks love the icing, too much tends to hide the cake itself.  The cake is what you want them to remember.

            Scientifically it is known that people process only a set amount of incoming information in a given time period.  If you want them to remember the meat of the subject try not to overwhelm them with supplemental extraneous speech to process least they remember the icing and not the cake.  An alternative response is seen as a person becoming bored or inattentive if they already get the point which runs the risk of them not being pulled back in when you get back on point leaving them saying later now what did he say ☺.

            A good historical example of this is the Gettysburg address.  The main speaker was Edward Everett who spoke eloquently for 2 hrs, Lincoln spoke for only 2 minutes, we remember everything of what Lincoln said but nothing of what Everett said.  I want people to remember your words.

            That is it like I said, to begin with, feel free to react to this in any way you deem fit.  If I am truly being led by the Lord you will react appropriately.  Now if you do act on this it will take weeks, more probably months and potentially years for you to realize the far-reaching effects.  I pray that God gives you the patience that I sometimes don’t have.

            Patrick, I love you as a brother and (since I have a real brother in the ministry) I know that the leadership role you have taken on is extremely taxing at times and I respect you immensely for taking on this role.  Please continue to do good and know you are making a difference.