Abundant Life Sermons
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Bishop James Mooney

We are quickly coming to the end of the year. As we press into the New Year many are asking who is in control. The September 11 crisis took our world by surprise and caused many to question who is in control of world events. At the same time it caused others to re-examine their faith in God. A few weeks after the September 11 crisis our nation went to war against terrorism and it seemed as though our world was spinning out of control.

As human beings we like to think and believe that we are in control of things that happen in our lives. But the fact is there are many things that are beyond our control. You and I cannot control everything that happens. As a result many are living in a state of fear and insecurity. I have some good news for you this morning; God is still in control of this world. While the events of 2001 caught us by surprise they did not catch God by surprise.

We discovered that there are many things that we cannot count on; Such as world peace, the value of a dollar, our health and sometimes we cannot even count on those we love. But there is one thing or better yet one person that we can count on and that is God. You and I can count on God; we can trust God to keep His word. GOD IS IN CONTROL!!

We need to have a strong belief and complete faith that God is in absolute control of the world that we live in.

1 Chronicles 29:11 "Everything in the heavens and the earth is Yours, O Lord. We adore You as being in control of everything." The Living Bible

The Bible calls this God's sovereignty. That means He is the absolute authority in life. He's the ultimate ruler. He is in charge and He is in control. The Bible teaches us that God is in control of the world. He created the world and all that is in it. He sustains this world by the power of His word.

Hebrews 11:3 God's Son has all the brightness of God's own glory and is like him in every way. By his own mighty word, he holds the universe together. The Contemporary English

Not only is God in control of the world; He is also in control of history. We are moving toward a climax. We are moving forward to a grand climax. One day Jesus Christ is going to come back. One day there will be a judgment day. History is His-story. We're not going through just random acts of events that happen in life. There is a grand design. There is a purpose. There is a plan. And God is in control of history.

Not only is He in control of the world, not only is He in control of history; God is also in control of our lives. Therefore we need to walk in faith that what ever happens in our lives God can and will use it for our eternal good. God is in control.

There is a question that we need to answer before I get into the heart of this message.

1. If God is in control, then why do bad things happen to us?

When God gave man the freedom to choose. Man made some bad decisions. Adam chose to disobey God and as a result sin and sickness enter the world. Someone may object and say that it isn't fair for us to suffer because of Adam's disobedience. I want to remind everyone that even in our day there are those that still choose to live in disobedience to God's word. And sometime we Christians disobey God. We make choices and then we reap the consequences of those choices.

You can choose to ruin your life but you're not free from the consequences of it. So God is in control.

For a believer, that is comforting news in a world that seems to be spinning out of control. As we face a New Year where we don't know what is going to happen, we can know that God is in control and that should bring us comfort. There are three Facts that we need to remember about God's control:

JEREMIAH 29: 11FOR I KNOW THE THOUGHTS THAT I THINK TOWARD YOU, SAITH THE LORD, THOUGHTS OF PEACE, AND NOT OF EVIL, TO GIVE YOU AN EXPECTED END.

Many times people plan and live their lives without given any thought of God's plans for their lives. That is to be expected of the world but not Christians. As Christians we should seek the perfect will of God for our lives. But that is not always the case. There are many Christians that plan and live their lives as though God didn't exist or have a plan for their lives.

Proverbs 19:21 "Many are the plans in a man's heart but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails."

Proverbs 19:21 We may make a lot of plans, but the LORD will do what he has decided. The Contemporary English

When we plan a head for the New Year we need to plan a head with an eyes and heart toward God. "We may make our plans but God has the last word." How many of you have ever had God change your plans? How many of you did not marry the first person you thought you might marry? If I had married the first woman that I asked to marry me, I would've married the wrong woman. I am glad that God changed my mind.

I'm not saying that we shouldn't have goals. I'm not saying that we shouldn't make plans. In fact, the Bible says we should to make plans. But, "We should make our plans counting on God to direct us." The more mature we become as a believer, the more flexible we become and the more open to change we become. Why? Because we realize how little we know.

The older I get the more I realize how much I don't know. When I was 16, I knew everything. And my dad knew nothing. It's amazing how smart he got by the time I was 21.

So make plans but the key is to cooperate with God. And you pray about your plans, "We should make our plans counting on God to direct us." Planning without prayer is presumption. You ought to say, "Lord, what do You want me to do?" One of the prayers I've prayed probably as much as any prayer in the last 15 years or so is, " God what do you want me to do? How can I best serve you?

That's a good prayer for all of us to pray as we enter the New Year. "Lord, what's the next step with my family? … What's the next step with my business? … Lord, what's the next step in that relationship that I'm involved in? … What's the next step in the ministry You have for me? … What's the next step in our finances?" Instead of praying, "God, bless what I'm doing," you ought to start praying, "God, help me to do what You're blessing." That means my plans have a limit.

Genesis 50: 20But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.

Genesis 50: 20 You tried to harm me, but God made it turn out for the best, so that he could save all these people, as he is now doing. The Contemporary English

Romans 8: 28And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

That's good news. Life is not a series of random events, with no meaning, or accidents that just come and go. Life has a meaning. Life has a purpose. If you are a believer, nothing comes into your life without the Heavenly Father's permission. Every thing that happens in your life, even the bad, is Father-filtered. It can't come into your life without permission. Your problems have a purpose.

I am not saying that everything that happens to you is God's will. That is not true. God's will is not always done on earth. That's why we pray, "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." I'm not saying that God causes everything. He doesn't. God does not cause your problems. He doesn't have to. But He does permit them. And He does use them for good in your life, in the grand design and greater scheme of things if we cooperate with His plan, if we trust Him. If we maintain the right attitude through the trials and tribulations that we go through God will work all things out to our good our eternal good.

God will use your problem to get you in the position that He wants you in. God will use your problem to get you to the place that He has designed you for and designed for you. Our problems are opportunities to see God's power work on our behalf.

1 Peter 1:6-7 "At present you may be temporarily harassed with all kinds of trials. This is no accident. It happens to prove your faith which is infinitely more valuable than gold."

Peter is saying that the trials and troubles that we are going through are not accidents. They are Divine appointments arranged by God to prove the quality, character and strength of our faith.

Joseph said, "You meant it for bad but God meant it for good." His brothers cheated him. His brothers mistreated him. His brothers sold him into slavery. He ended up being accused falsely of rape and thrown into prison for a crime he didn't commit. All kinds of bad things happen to Joseph. But God was working in it. He ends up second in command in Egypt and he saves his country and he saves Egypt, too. And he says to his brothers, later, "You meant it for bad but God meant it for good."

So what is the key to my response to the problems? If I know God's in control and He has a Plan for my life and He has a purpose for my problems, what is my response?

2 Corinthians 4 "This is the reason we never loose heart [we never get discouraged, we don't give up]. These troubles which are temporary are winning for us a permanent, glorious and solid reward all out of proportion to our pain."

The correct response to the problems we go through this next year is to look past the pain to see God's ultimate purpose.

Ephesians 3: 20Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,

Prayers are not a waste of time. They make a difference. Do you ever really wonder if prayer works? Sometimes Satan starts whispering in my ears. "Nobody's hearing this. God's not listening. You're wasting your time. Your prayer is not going to get above the ceiling. You're conning yourself. You're psyching yourself up. This is a psychological trick. Prayer doesn't work. It's mumbo-jumbo. It's a waste of time." Does Satan ever say that to you?

The truth is, prayer works because God is in control. If God were not in control, prayer is a waste of time. But because God is in control, He can control the uncontrollable. You don't have to know the key men if you know the Man who holds the keys. Your boss is not the ultimate authority in life. You have a higher authority you can appeal to and He has a lot of leverage. He can do things that you never thought possible.

Prayers have an impact because God is in control. That's the basis of all miracles - God's sovereignty. If He wants to overrule nature, He can. If He wants to overrule a human law, He can. If He wants to overrule a government, He can. He can do whatever He wants to do.

This is the confidence that we have in approaching God, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us." Since God is in control, then what is the best way to enter the New Year? Acknowledge His control over my life. Don't fight it, don't run from it, and don't resist it. Accept it. Cooperate with it. Be grateful for it. Enjoy the blessing of it. Thank God for it. In His control, nothing can devastate you. Nothing that happens in the next year can devastate you if you're trusting in the one who controls it all. Let Him control the uncontrollable and you stop worrying about it. Some of us spend a lot of time worrying about things that we have no control over when we should be talking to the one who is in control of all things. Learn to Trust God and then you can enter the New Year with peace, with confidence, with hope.

The best way to prepare for the New Year is to establish a spiritual base for your life.

How do you establish a spiritual base for your life?

Let me suggest for steps to help you build a spiritual B-A-S-E for your life.

B - Believe Jesus Christ died on the cross for you and showed He was God by coming back to life. That's what Easter is all about. You believe. "It is this good news that saves you, that Christ died for our sins just as the scripture says He would, that He was buried and three days afterwards He arose from the grave." You believe that Jesus Christ was who He said He was.

Believing in Christ means more than just head knowledge. I believe in Hitler but I'm not a Nazi. I believe in Stalin but I'm not a communist. I believe in Jesus and I'm a Christian. What's the difference? I'm a Christian because I've committed myself to Christ and not to those others.

The word "believe" in Greek in the Bible means "to trust in, cling to, to rely on, to adhere to." It means to be totally committed. It means to do it from your heart and not just from your head. A lot of people are missing heaven by eighteen inches because they know it in their head - "I believe Jesus was God" - but they don't have it in their heart. Even the devil believes Jesus was the Son of God, but you're not going to find him in heaven. Because it's more than knowing that Christ is God. It's committing yourself to that fact and to Him as your Lord.

Believe Jesus Christ died on the cross for me and showed He was God by coming back to life.

A - Accept God's free forgiveness for your sins. "Now God says He will accept and acquit us, declare us not guilty If we trust Jesus Christ to take away our sins. We can all be saved in the same way, by coming to Christ no matter who we are or what we've been like." Aren't you grateful for that last phrase? I'm so grateful that Jesus Christ loves me no matter who we are or what we've been like. You're never too bad, you're never too far-gone, you're never a hopeless case. There are no hopeless cases in God's book. He says we can come to him and He does the Etch-A-sketch thing - He turns it upside down and shakes it and the slate is wiped clean.

So "A", accept God's free forgiveness for all my sins. They're wiped away. They're washed away.

S - Switch to God's plan for my life. The Bible says "Turn from your sins and act on this glorious news… Don't let the world squeeze you into it's own mold but let God remake you so that your whole attitude of mind is changed." Switch to God's plan for your life. The Bible calls that repentance. The Greek word literally means, "to change your mind". Change the way you're headed.

E - Express your desire for Christ to be the director of your life. You don't become a Christian until you ask. God doesn't save anybody until they ask to be saved. "If you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved." God promises. Here's a prayer you can pray: "Dear God, I believe You sent your son, Jesus to die for my sins so I can be forgiven. I'm sorry for my sins and I want to live the rest of my life the way You want me to. Please put Your Spirit in my life to direct me. Amen."

Prayer: