Rev. David Holwick ZE Spiritual Recovery series
First Baptist Church Steps 2&3
Ledgewood, New Jersey
October 14, 2001
Psalm 61:1-8
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Step #2: Come to believe that a Power greater than ourselves can
restore us to sanity.
Step #3: Make a decision to turn our will and our lives over to
the care of God as we understand him.
I. Some things are bigger than we are.
A. Hiking in the Rocky Mountains.
1) The size of the mountains seems overwhelming.
2) "My mind will not be able to remember how big this is."
B. Bigness can be comforting or threatening.
1) Little children want big fathers.
2) But nobody wants big problems.
3) God is big enough to solve our biggest problems.
C. There is a Higher Power beyond ourselves.
1) Step #2: Come to believe that a Power greater than
ourselves could restore us to sanity.
2) Step #3: Make a decision to turn our will and our lives
over to the care of God as we understand him.
3) Old Testament image: coming to the Rock who is higher
than we are. Psalm 61:2
II. Small things can get large enough to destroy us.
A. Our habits and relationships can become dangerous.
1) Sometimes they seem stronger than we are.
B. A definition of addiction by psychiatrist Gerald May:
"Addiction is giving ourselves over to things that,
in our deepest honesty, we really do not want.
It is a process of attachment which 'nails' our desire
to specific objects, with the result that our will
and desire become enslaved.
Addiction breeds willfulness within us, yet paradoxically
it erodes our free will and eats away at our dignity."
#876
C. The epiphany of inadequacy.
1) The wonderful thing about addiction is that is brings us
to our knees.
2) When we "hit bottom" we come to know that we cannot solve
all our problems, no matter how hard we try.
3) Something deep inside us points us to something, someone
who is greater than us.
III. "God as we understand him."
A. Oxford Group meaning: openness to people who are searching.
1) Beginners do not automatically become experts.
a) Even after decades of maturity we still know but a
fraction about God.
b) Those who think they know the most often live it the
least.
2) Jesus accepted those who were weak in faith if their
hearts were well-intentioned.
a) God accepts honest immaturity.
b) Churches should also.
1> There is no such thing as a "dumb question."
2> Be more concerned about a young believer's soul
than their shaky doctrine.
B. Are we defining God, or allowing him to define us?
1) Many believe any view of God is ok.
a) Twelve Step group itself.
b) Inner self. (many Unitarian sermons on AA on internet)
c) Other gods, or an undefined Supreme God.
2) Tendency is to yield to a God we feel comfortable with.
Often he bears a striking resemblance to US.
C. We must understand God as Bible portrays him.
1) No other gods before me - first commandment. Exod 20:3
a) Addictions are really a form of idolatry.
b) We worship these objects of attachment, and are
prevented from truly, freely loving God and one
another.
2) Jesus taught that our view of God is critical.
a) Other religions often share similar views on God.
1> Islam - God is all-powerful Creator.
A> "Allah" is simply Arabic word for God.
B> They identify him with God of Abraham.
C> They give him same moral and spiritual
qualities we do.
2> Big difference: how does God save us?
b) Matthew 11:27 - no one knows Father, except through
Jesus.
c) John 8:24 - must believe Jesus represents God.
D. We cannot experience the full awakening proclaimed by the
Twelfth Step, until we call the Higher Power by his
true name announced in the Bible.
1) The basic message of recovery groups: "Something saves."
2) The basic message of the Bible: "JESUS saves."
"At the name of Jesus, every knee will bow."
IV. God is higher than we are.
A. God is bigger than our thoughts.
1) We can never fully understand him.
a) Interesting about being a Christian - always something
new to think about.
b) You can never think it out completely.
Augustine, while puzzling over the doctrine of the
Trinity, was walking along the beach one day when he
observed a young boy with a bucket.
He was running back and forth to pour water into a
little hole.
Augustine asked, "What are you doing?"
The boy replied, "I'm trying to put the ocean into this
hole."
Then Augustine realized that he had been trying to put
an infinite God into his finite mind.
#19227
2) His ways are not our ways.
3) But we can be more like him.
B. God is bigger than our problems.
1) Higher rock - unshakable, rock-solid.
2) Not like World Trade Center.
a) (Amazingly how little is left)
V. Surrendering to the Higher Power.
A. "Let go, and let God."
1) There is an element of passivity, in that we realize we
cannot solve our problems no matter how hard we try.
2) We surrender when we realize that our deepest needs can only
be met by God, not by our addictions.
As an infantry company commander in Vietnam in 1967, Paul
Stanley saw Viet Cong soldiers surrender many times.
As they were placed in custody, marched away, and briefly
interrogated, their body language and facial expressions
always caught his attention.
Most hung their heads in shame, staring at the ground,
unwilling to look their captors in the eye.
But some stood erect, staring defiantly at those around them,
resisting any attempt by the Americans to control them.
They had surrendered physically but not mentally.
On one occasion after the enemy had withdrawn, Stanley came
upon several G.I.s surrounding a wounded Viet Cong.
Shot through the lower leg, he was hostile and frightened,
yet helpless.
He threw mud and kicked with his one good leg when anyone
came near him.
When Paul joined the circle around the wounded enemy, one
soldier asked him, "Sir what do we do?
He's losing blood fast and needs medical attention."
Stanley looked down at the struggling Viet Cong and saw the
face of a 16- or 17-year-old boy.
He unbuckled his pistol belt and hand grenades so the boy
could not grab them.
Then, speaking gently, he moved toward him.
The young soldier stared fearfully at him as he knelt down
but he allowed the American to slide his arms under him
and pick him up.
As Stanley walked with him toward a waiting helicopter, the
wounded soldier began to cry and hold him tight.
He kept looking at him and squeezing him tighter.
They climbed into the helicopter and took off.
During the ride, the young captive sat on the floor,
clinging to the Americans leg.
Never having ridden in a helicopter, he looked out with
panic as they gained altitude and flew over the trees.
He fixed his eyes back on Stanley, who smiled reassuringly
and put his hand on his shoulder.
After landing, Stanley picked him up and walked toward the
medical tent.
As they crossed the field, he felt the tenseness leave the
young man's body and his tight grasp loosen.
His eyes softened, and his head leaned against Stanley's
chest.
The fear and resistance were gone - he had finally surrendered.
The God to whom we surrender is not our enemy.
He heals and cares for everyone he takes captive.
#2174
B. We must turn our will over to God.
1) It's not enough to accept God's existence - Satan does that.
2) Honest seekers must "surrender as much of ourselves as we
can to as much of Christ as we understand." (Shoemaker)
3) Example of Zacchaeus. Luke 19:8
C. Obedience - doing what God says.
1) Surrendering is active as well as passive.
2) We don't just accept God, we obey him.
a) Obey what he tells us through our conscience.
b) Obey what he tells us through the Bible.
D. How surrendered are you?
1) It is more than an initial commitment to Jesus.
2) Even believers can allow other Masters into their lives.
3) Our God is a jealous God. He wants all of us.
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SOURCES FOR ILLUSTRATIONS USED IN THIS SERMON:
Helpful for this sermon, and the entire series, is the article "The
Hidden Gospel of the 12 Steps," by Tim Stafford, Christianity Today;
July 22, 1991, pages 14ff.
# 876 "Slaves of Desire," by Gerald G. May, Christianity Today
magazine, May 12, 1989, page 63.
# 2174 "Surrender," by Paul Stanley, Leadership Journal, Summer 1992,
page 47.
#19227 "Oceans Don't Fit In Buckets." In "Illustrations for Biblical
Preaching," by Michael Green, Baker Book House, 1993, page 389;
referred to in Rev. Brett Blair's Illustrations By Email,
www.sermonillustrations.com; June 10, 2001.
These and 18,000 others are part of a database that can be downloaded,
absolutely free, at http://www.holwick.com/database.html
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