Rev. David Holwick ZI James series #13
First Baptist Church
Ledgewood, New Jersey
November 4, 2007
James 4:13-17
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I. Where do you want to be five years from now?
A. Writing yourself a check.
Jim Carrey came to Hollywood years ago as a struggling
standup comic.
He had a wife and a baby and their small apartment
had a mattress on the floor.
Around 1990 he wrote a check for $10,000,000 and put it in
his wallet.
He wrote it to "Jim Carrey, for acting services rendered".
He carried it in his wallet for 4 years.
In 1994 he was paid $10,000,000 for "Dumb and Dumber."
Well, at least he got his $10 million.
In 2003 he was paid $25,000,000 for "Bruce Almighty."
Do you wish you could plan YOUR life like this?
#31374
B. Americans plan more than anyone else.
1) Think of the calendar your family operates by.
a) The Holwicks have multiple calendars, none synchronized.
1> (Hold up old hand-written poster-sized version)
b) I have Easter week plotted out through 2011.
2) Many of you have planned out your retirement and beyond.
(Gates of Heaven or behind the Presbyterian Church?)
C. God has a plan, too.
1) How do your plans fit in with his?
2) Do you factor him in at all - or do you plan like you're on
your own?
3) Your attitude toward the future reveals a lot about your
faith.
II. Masters of the Universe, A.D. 60.
A. James seems to be addressing Christian businessmen.
1) Like businessmen of today, ancient ones traveled
extensively.
2) James describes their specific dates, destinations,
time frames and profit potential.
3) "Now listen" makes it plain he is rebuking them.
B. Is profitable business wrong?
1) Some would see verse 13 as condemnation of Wall Street
greed.
Stan O'Neal had plans like this.
He was the CEO of the Merrill Lynch investment firm.
Under his leadership, they made a pile of money
with risky new strategies.
He was confident he knew where the market was headed.
Then the mortgage crisis hit.
In one quarter, Merrill Lynch lost $8 billion in profit
and assets.
And now he has lost his job.
But don't pity him too much.
I hear his severance package is $140 million!
2) But many businessmen are found in the Bible.
a) Profit per se is not sinful.
b) Jesus himself gives parables where the heroes double
their money or better.
C. Is it the planning that is wrong?
1) Our church has long-range growth plans and building plans.
a) Certainly, plans can be rigid and stifling.
b) But non-planning can be a cover-up for laziness and
lack of vision.
2) The Bible says planning is not sinful.
a) Luke 14:28, "count the cost."
1> Building contractors in view.
2> Application: what it costs to be a Christian.
b) Many plans are made throughout the Bible.
c) Apparently planning itself is not sinful - if it's
done right.
III. One thing must not be left out of our plans - GOD.
A. This is difference between valid and invalid plans.
1) Example of atheist-oriented plan:
a) Rich farmer and anticipated crops. Luke 12:16-21
b) He is completely self-centered and ignores God.
2) Examples of God-oriented plans in Bible:
a) Paul's anticipated return to Ephesus. Acts 18:21
b) A visit to Corinth. 1 Cor 4:19
c) Longer stay if permitted. 1 Cor 16:7
d) Reaching spiritual maturity. Hebrews 6:3
B. Are we willing for Lord to be willing?
1) Superstition or foundation.
a) For many, "Lord willing" is like saying, "Knock on wood."
1> [knocking appeases demons in wood]
2> Say it in front of pastor - pause - knock on wood.
b) People in Bible often make plans without this phrase.
1> For example, sometimes the Apostle Paul used it,
and sometimes he didn't.
2) The right mindset is more important than the right words.
a) Honoring God with our lives should be more important
to us than having things turn out way we expect.
IV. Are we just believing atheists?
A. The empty hole.
1) One writer said of Americans, "98% believe in God and 100%
are humanists."
a) To really trust in God is considered naive.
b) In reality, we believe and do what we want.
2) The United Nations "Meditation Room."
Charles Colson is one of the foremost Christian thinkers
in America today.
A while back he visited the United Nations in NYC.
The complex is very impressive.
After a tour, Colson asked to visit the chapel.
Since all nations will bow before God, Colson wanted to
see the room where the representatives worshipped.
The person he asked had a puzzled look.
"Chapel? We don't have a chapel. Try across the street."
He dodged the infamous New York taxis and crossed the street.
The security officer told him there was a chapel, but it
had nothing to do with the U.N.
He looked through a directory, and told Colson, "Oh, I see.
It's back across the street.
Tell them you're looking for the meditation room."
Colson went back, only to be told that the room was not open
to the public due to a personnel cutback.
But since he was so persistent, a guard would show him the
room.
The door was unmarked.
The room itself was small and had no decoration.
There were no windows. The walls were stark white.
A large square rock stood in the center of the room, but
no other religious symbol.
Bright ceiling lights illuminated a piece of modern art on
the front wall: steel squares and ovals.
The lights were actually focused on a void, which Colson
perceives as the soul of the brave new world.
#2727
3) Western society is turning away from religious faith.
a) Religion is for weak people.
1> We are labeled as dangerous kooks.
2> Scandinavia's new approach - treat evangelicals
as extremists.
b) Ironic that the most dynamic societies in Asia are now
turning to Christianity.
B. Most Americans don't factor God into their lives.
1) What was last time you prayed for God's guidance?
a) Do you ever commit business decisions to him?
b) Do you ask yourself, "What would Jesus do?"
c) Does your Christian belief have any practical influence
on how you live?
d) Augustine said, "Love God and do as you please."
We change it to,
"Do as you please and say you love God."
2) God is all that really matters.
Over and over again during his 72-day ordeal in the Andes,
Nando Parrado would tell himself, "I am already dead,
I am already dead."
That mantra allowed him to vanquish the fear that gripped
him.
It perhaps also explains why, when given a miraculous second
chance at life, he has lived ever since with gusto.
Mr. Parrado, is one of the 16 survivors of the crash of an
Uruguayan plane in the Andes Mountains in October 1972.
It was portrayed in the movie "Alive."
His mother and younger sister were among those who died
there in the Andes.
His sister succumbed to injuries and cold as he held her
in his arms.
It was Nando who, with a single companion, trekked through
the harsh mountains with virtually no supplies or
protection.
But finally they were able to guide rescuers back to the
crash site to save his friends and teammates.
Since that deliverance, Mr. Parrado has been a race car
driver, television host, motivational speaker, business
entrepreneur and author.
But no matter what he does, he says, his actions are guided
by the lessons he learned and the conversations about
life, death, God and religion that took place during
his struggle to survive.
"We were lucky, extremely lucky," he said.
"We didn't have any food, clothes or water, and they
weren't searching for us.
So how could we survive?
I lost everything, my family, friends and future, but
I was resurrected.
I came back to life from the grave."
After the ordeal, Parrado became a successful businessman,
but a financial crisis hit Uruguay and Argentina in 2001.
Many businesses failed.
Mr. Parrado's friends and partners were frantic, losing
sleep over their finances.
But he was completely calm.
He said, "Those endless nights in the Andes were terribly,
terribly, terribly cold, and so we burned all the money
we had.
I can tell you that a $1 bill burns in the same amount of
time as a $100 bill."
#33261
V. Life holds no guarantees.
A. Life is uncertain.
1) No one knows the future.
a) Stock market and monkeys with darts vs. professionals.
b) False predictions of Second Coming.
2) Our plans must be flexible to absorb unexpected.
B. Life is short.
1) We expect to live to 70's or 80's, but no one knows.
Approaching 85 years of age, Mrs. Wells finally decided
to give up her home in North Carolina and move to
Miami.
A real estate agent enthusiastically drove her all over
Miami, praising every apartment they looked at.
"And this one, what a steal," he said, "the investment of a
lifetime.
Why, in ten years it's gonna be worth three times as much!"
"Sonny," interrupted Mrs. Wells, "at my age I don't even
buy green bananas."
#7599
2) James - life is a vapor.
a) Old Testament - count your days.
b) They are limited, so make them matter.
c) Humbly acknowledge that only God is in control.
C. Plan like you'll live to be 200. Live like today is your last.
1) Get your physical house in order.
a) Most don't have wills.
2) Get your spiritual house in order. 2 Cor 6:2
a) Make your personal salvation certain. "Today is day..."
b) Get your spiritual goals done.
(Reconcile, read Bible...)
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SOURCES FOR ILLUSTRATIONS USED IN THIS SERMON:
# 2727 "The United Nations' Meditation Room," by R. Kent Hughes in his
commentary "James: Faith That Works," 1991, p. 201.
# 7599 "She Doesn't Even Buy Green Bananas," by Alan Smith, TFTD,
January 6, 2000; Roddy Chestnut Collection
#31374 "Dumb And Dumber Cashed The Check," by David Holwick from various
Internet sources such as http://www.quotationspage.com/quote/~
38176.html, November 4, 2007.
#33261 "He Was Already Dead, So He Lives With Gusto," by Larry Rohter,
America Online News, September 30, 2006.
These and 30,000 others are part of the Kerux database that can be
downloaded, absolutely free, at http://www.holwick.com/database.html
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