Sermon Notes
Languishing
Suffer from being forced to remain in an unpleasant place or situation
Matthew 2:1–16
Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews?
King Herod was deeply disturbed when he heard this (newborn king), as was everyone in Jerusalem. He called a meeting of the leading priests and teachers of religious law and asked, “Where is the Messiah supposed to be born?” “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they said, “for this is what the prophet wrote: . . . for a ruler will come from you who will be the shepherd for my people Israel.’ ”
Then Herod called for a private meeting with the wise men . . . he told them, “Go to Bethlehem and search carefully for the child. And when you find him, come back and tell me so that I can go and worship him, too!”
After the wise men were gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up! Flee to Egypt with the child and his mother,” the angel said. “Stay there until I tell you to return, because Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.” That night Joseph left for Egypt with the child and Mary, his mother, and they stayed there until Herod’s death.
Herod was furious when he realized that the wise men had outwitted him. He sent soldiers to kill all the boys in and around Bethlehem who were two years old and under…
There is a cost to following Jesus. But there is a higher cost to not following him.
Option A: you deny Jesus and follow yourself.
“Take away my bent to sinning.”
- Charles Wesley, “Love Divine, All Loves Excelling” (Hymn)
Option B: you deny yourself and follow Jesus.
Thee we would be always blessing,
Serve thee as thy hosts above,
Pray and praise thee without ceasing,
Glory in Thy perfect Love.
- Charles Wesley, “Love Divine, All Loves Excelling” (Hymn)
Luke 9:24
If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it.
Why would the devil target our trust in God?
Until we come to the place where we genuinely trust Jesus . . . over our own intuition or feelings, and trust that God is a loving and wise Father with good intentions for our joy, death to self will remain an unwinnable war of attrition (erosion) between the torn factions of our fragmented souls.
- John Mark Comer
Unwillingness to trust what God wants for me is only my deepest happiness.
- Ignatius
The question isn’t “Do you live by faith?” but “Who or what do you put your faith in?”
Stages toward the “Transformed Life” from E. Stanley Jones