Are we truly seeking God’s Kingdom first, or are we trying to make God fit into our own desires and expectations? Join us online and be sure to sign up for Encounter on Wednesday nights launching September 13th! ? IT’S EASY TO GIVE at Harmony, text any amount to (859) 459-0316 to get started (or give online @ my.harmonychurch.cc/give ).
OPENING ILLUSTRATION:
All right, let’s get down to brass tacks – who is the most annoying customer/client you’ve ever dealt with? You know, the one who is CONSTANTLY changing the specs of their design, or is constantly complaining about the level of service. The customer who is never happy or never satisfied.
I was in a store the other day and there was this woman and her husband who had purchased a product, used the product several times, and then wanted to return it and exchange it for a different one. The type of product it was was the kind of thing that once you use it, it’s used. It was the most uncomfortable 15 minutes of my life listening to this couple harass this young worker trying to get her to return the item. I literally almost stepped in and was like, “Can I help y’all?”
What do you do when “the customer is always right” isn’t right?
Now I know it depends on your industry and what your business is. Most of you probably know that taking a loss in your business is worth keeping most customers.
But there are industries and arenas of life where this idea of “the customer is always right” actually sets a person up for failure.
Imagine a teacher operating under those standards…
ILLUSTRATION:
When I was in bible college, I had this afternoon class with a handful of students. When the professor showed up I said, “This college pays you, right?” He said, “Yes” I said, “and they get their funds to pay you from the tuition we pay, right?” He said, “Yes,” I said, “and whoever pays your salary is your boss, so let us do you a favor and give you the day off – you’ve earned it…” He laughed and said, “No”.
Ha, because the customer is not always right.
One of the core dangers that is created inside of Americans from “the customer is always right” and other phrases we live by is that we all too easily begin to see our worlds from an egocentric point of view.
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We can too easily view ourselves as the center of the universe.
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And that is eternally dangerous…
I want to walk us into a story of Encountering God that so elegantly cuts through the malarkey and helps us see ourselves in the proper context… Check it out…
SET UP:
What we are about to enter into is from the time of the pharaohs. The Israelites have followed Moses out into the desert and now they are about to move into the promised land. This is the in-between them taking those first few steps into Canaan and the life they had lived wandering in the desert for 40 years. Joshua has just finished taking all the young men and circumcising them.
They are on the cusp of a massive change in their history. Jericho is their next stop – and it’s a serious challenge. Joshua has not faced anything like this before. He is going to have to figure out how to take this city. This is the encounter we get in this moment…
Joshua 5:13-15
13 Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?”
ILLUSTRATION:
When I was in college, some buddies and I got lost and ended up on an army base – there was this huge line of cars we were in, and there were military guys with German shepherds. We tried to flip around and go the other direction and this military guy with a machine gun started yelling at us to get back in line… Ha, talk about being scared.
Joshua, is out, probably scoping out Jericho and he sees a military man with a sword drawn. This is the sign of someone ready for battle. Joshua isn’t some wimpy college kid he asks this guy if he’s for Joshua and the Israelites or if he’s for his enemies.
The implications are, “If you’re for me, then I won’t have to hurt you, but if you are for my enemies, we’re gonna fight”
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Joshua never considered that there could be a third option…
Check it out…
14 “Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.”
This soldier is not for Joshua, he’s not for Joshua’s enemies. He’s for Yahweh, God.
Man, we need to set up a tent and camp here for a minute.
Listen church,
I’m convinced that what more of us need is an encounter with God that reminds us we are supposed to be on His team, He’s not on ours.
So much of our music in modern worship is about how much God is for you and loves you – it’s not untrue, but it misses something when it doesn’t paint the whole picture.
Your job is to be after God.
Listen to this parable Jesus told about
Luke 17:7-10 (The Message Version)
“Suppose one of you has a servant who comes in from plowing the field or tending the sheep. Would you take his coat, set the table, and say, ‘Sit down and eat’? Wouldn’t you be more likely to say, ‘Prepare dinner; change your clothes and wait table for me until I’ve finished my coffee; then go to the kitchen and have your supper’? Does the servant get special thanks for doing what’s expected of him? It’s the same with you. When you’ve done everything expected of you, be matter-of-fact and say, ‘The work is done. What we were told to do, we did.’”
Can I ask you a question?
Does that rub you the wrong way?
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The idea that at the end of the day, you and I are just servants of the King…
Joshua gets this…
Look at how Joshua responds to this angel…
Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord[a] have for his servant?”
15 The commander of the Lord’s army replied, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.
The moment Joshua realizes he’s having an encounter with God, he falls on his face.
Do you understand that when you came to Jesus, you came to a King? You came to the God of the universe. He was the one who thought up the color blue and the idea of water being able to take on 3 forms. He is the one who can overthrow nations and raise up servants to be kings. He is the God of the universe.
ILLUSTRATION:
Years ago I worked in a church where the worship time was less than stellar. The music was so bad I’d literally bear through it week after week just trying to get through it. I’d sit there in my head thinking how terrible it was. How I wished it was better and I wished it was more like I wanted it. One morning I was sitting there waiting to get to preach and thinking how much I hated it when the Holy Spirit whispered to me, “It’s not for you…”
Ugh… I needed to be slapped in the face like that…
Let me ask you a question…
What’s the aim of your life?
Do you want to just be comfortable?
Do you want to make more money?
Do you just want your relationships to be chaos-free?
Do you want things your way?
Jesus said “Seek first the Kingdom of God and his righteousness”
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You can’t fake seeking first God’s Kingdom – God can’t be tricked. Either Jesus is King or you are. Which is it?
CLOSING ILLUSTRATION:
One of my favorite jobs growing up that I had was tossing pizzas at Dominos. I worked on making the pizzas and learned how to toss the dough. I love it still to this day, but can I tell you something? You can tell someone how to toss dough, but it’s so much easier to show them.
We want you to come to Encounter on Wednesday nights because we want you to Encounter God through community – I think lots of us want Jesus to be King in our lives, but we don’t really know what that means or how that looks. Listen, Christianity is an on-the-job training kind of thing. You learn it by doing it with other people who are a little further along than you. You learn to toss that dough by watching others and learning from them. Grabbing ahold of some of the passion they have and the way they ask questions. You come as a servant and learn from the King and His other servants…
