Year In Review

I have to tell you that some things give me cold chills.

! I am an emotional person.

For you that don't know me, I'll just tell you that ahead of time.

But that's the way I'm wired.

And I get cold chills when something touches my heart

and kind of connects.

And this morning I have cold chills to be able to say to you,

open your Bibles.

I want you to turn your Bible this morning

to 2 Corinthians 13, verse 5.

2 Corinthians 13:5

I have said many times that I am thankful

for the Lord bringing us our pastor-elect.

And I don't know if you pay attention to his prayers,

but his prayers are well-formed scripturally.

There's always a healthy dose of the Word of God

woven into his prayer, both to instruct

and to frame his thinking and to govern the things

that we join him in praying about.

And I'm thankful for that.

I found myself this morning so thankful

that in his prayer he prayed for me

as I opened the Word.

I like that.

And the reason is, is he wasn't praying,

Lord, I hope Reverend Knoyer

has had a good time reading USA Today

or, you know, Huffington Post

or, you know, the Wall Street Journal,

whatever else, so he could bring you

some very interesting little comment

about the culture and blah, blah, blah.

His prayer was that God would help Pastor Knoyer

as he opened the Word.

That's my job.

That's my calling.

And so when we take 2 Corinthians chapter 13 in hand,

2 Corinthians 13 · chapter mention

I want you to know that the Lord has commissioned me

and given me the responsibility of taking the Word of God

and making it clear and practical

for your sakes and for my sake.

God has also called you to have an active part to play

in what is going to take place

in the next hour and a half.

And that is that you're to be actively engaged.

See, I got some of you to...

Whoa.

Whoa.

That's all right.

Okay.

Hour and 20 minutes.

You have a part as well.

And I would appeal to you

to resist the natural tendency of the heart

to decide you're just going to sit there kind of passively

and wait to see if anything happens significant.

You are charged by the Word of God

to be active in prayer.

And if your heart and mind is not atypical,

it's needed.

And so I appeal to you to multitask

that as I preach, you pray and listen.

Well, here we are at the start of the new year.

And New Year's are times

that most people make resolutions.

Isn't that right?

I, for whatever reason,

I was doing a little research

on what kind of resolutions people make.

And probably one of the most common resolutions

people make is to exercise more.

I mean, I understand,

not from personal experience,

but from observation,

that the gyms just kind of are flooded

with about four or five weeks of people

who have made resolutions

to kind of improve their health

and physiology.

And so off they go to the gym

and it kind of really bugs the regulars

because there are people

that don't know how to run the treadmill

and are on the stepper and things.

And they're only there for a couple weeks,

but they really break the routine.

And the beginning of the year

is where some people decide

that they're going to quit smoking.

I trust that's not the general nature

of our fellowship,

but you know, people do.

And people think, well, okay,

in the new year,

I think I'm going to read through the Bible.

Or I'm going to make a different resolution.

I'm going to finish my degree

or I'm going to, whatever it is.

We have a tendency of doing that

at the beginning of the new year

and I want to take a completely different track.

I'd like us to look back

before we look forward.

And the purpose of a backward glance

is to help us think objectively

about where we have been

in order to frame what we do going forward.

I want to tell you that in this new year,

one of the things that is going to characterize

this fellowship is that Pastor Shearer

and I are going to share

about 50% of the preaching.

He is, we are going to, first of all,

tag team through January and February.

And what I mean by that

is back and forth, back and forth.

And then we'll settle into six weeks

that I will preach

and six weeks that he will preach.

And the first things

that we are going to look at

next week and the week after

relate to some of the objectives

and some of the things

that we as a fellowship want to focus on.

In relationship to that,

I think it's appropriate for us

to kind of look in the back

and say, all right, what is it?

What is it that we need?

And what are some of the things

that we need to pay attention to

in our own personal lives

and in our fellowship?

And that's what brings me

to this passage in 2 Corinthians 13, verse 5.

2 Corinthians 13:5

Examine yourselves

to see whether you are in the faith.

Test yourselves.

Or do you not realize this about yourselves,

that Jesus Christ is in you,

unless indeed you fail to meet the test?

Examining ourself is appropriate.

It's something that we all do fairly regularly.

This morning as I was finalizing the details

of getting dressed for the services,

one of the things that I did

was I stopped in the mirror

and I looked at my Christmas sweater.

I wanted to be sure that it kind of matched.

I decided, well, should I button it up?

Should I not button it?

Whatever.

You know, there are little details like that.

You pay attention.

Did my hair look right?

We all did that.

Am I right?

We pay attention to certain details.

We examine ourselves occasionally

when we're under pressure.

We stop and say, all right, what's going on?

Why am I responding this way?

I do want us to understand,

the passage tells us that we are to examine ourselves,

but I think we need to recognize

that it's fairly easy to examine yourself

and be quite deceived.

Think with me just for a moment.

You're there in 2 Corinthians,

but turn back.

2 Corinthians chapter 13,

2 Corinthians 13 · chapter mention

go back to chapter 10.

In 2 Corinthians chapter 10,

2 Corinthians 10 · chapter mention

Paul is in the process of defending

his apostolic ministry.

By the way, when people don't like what they hear,

one of the things that they tend to do

is become critical of the messenger,

and that's what had happened to Paul.

Well, look at what he says there in chapter 10, verse 12.

Not that we dare to classify or compare ourselves

with some of those who are commending themselves,

but when they measure themselves,

and the term here in the Greek

could be taken one of two ways.

I prefer the way that is not here in the ESV.

When they measure themselves by themselves

instead of one another

and compare themselves with themselves,

they are without understanding.

Now, here's the point that I want to start with.

I want you to recognize that self-examination

can be quite deceiving.

In particular, when we measure ourselves

by our own standard,

and we rely upon our own lack of objectivity

to determine where we are

and how we're doing spiritually.

I mean, it's amazing.

The truth of the matter is,

is we're better at identifying sin in other people

than we are identifying it where?

In ourselves.

And Paul says, listen, don't make that mistake.

And so when I start out here at the beginning

by saying, listen, it's important for us

to engage in self-examination,

I want you to recognize that just going about doing it

in a natural and a carnal way

can end up being quite deceiving,

and it can cause you a great deal of heartache

if not done properly.

But just because it can be done improperly

doesn't mean it shouldn't be done.

And so let me kind of step into this a little further

by saying spirit-enabled self-examination

is an essential part of the believer's life.

Spiritual examination enabled by the Holy Spirit

is an essential part of the believer's life.

Let me kind of get into that a little further

by having you look at several different passages

that hammer that point.

Go back, if you will, in your Bibles

to Job chapter 13, verse 23.

Job 13:23

Self-examination is beneficial,

though it is hard, and it's necessary,

in fact, it's characteristic of a thoughtful believer.

Here's what it says in Job.

How many are my iniquities and my sins?

Make me know my transgressions and my sin.

So let me ask you this.

When was the last time you prayed

and said, Lord, I am fairly good at fooling myself.

I need your help to be more discerning

about the issues of sin in my life.

Job prayed that way.

Let me have you look at another passage in Psalm 139

and turn to that, if you will.

We know Psalm 139 fairly well,

but mark what it says in verse 23 and 24.

Psalm 139, verse 23.

Psalms 139:23

Search me, O God, and know my heart.

Try me and know my thoughts.

And see if there be any grievous way in me

and lead me in the way everlasting.

Hey, Lord, you be the one that searches me

and checks out my heart.

And I need your help to do it

because my natural tendency is not to do that objectively,

not to be honest with myself.

Let me read another passage to you

in Lamentations 3, verse 40.

Lamentations 3:40

It says this,

Let us test and examine our ways

and return to the Lord.

Let us test.

Lamentations 3, verse 40.

Lamentations 3:40

Let us test and examine our ways

and return to the Lord.

I'm curious.

I'm curious.

When was the last time

that you consciously and deliberately

took some time to think carefully

about where you were in your spiritual journey,

your walk with Christ,

your relationship with Him

and with the body of Christ?

Come to one more passage.

In 1 Corinthians chapter 11,

1 Corinthians 11 · chapter mention

and last week I had the privilege

of having bronchitis that kept me in bed

until Sunday.

And I appreciate Pastor Shearer

on short notice

taking the Lord's table in communion.

And I don't know whether he used

1 Corinthians chapter 11,

1 Corinthians 11 · chapter mention

but you certainly are aware of the text

because we on various occasions

have come to that text

being reminded in that passage

not only of the fact

that we're to remember the Lord's death,

but we're also to do what?

We're to engage in self-examination.

It says,

But let a man examine himself

The Scripture encourages us

every time we take the Lord's table

to engage in self-examination.

And I would propose that

the better time to do it

is not while the elements

are coming down the row

and you,

oh,

we are very,

very superficial on short notice.

Isn't that right?

In fact,

the matter,

the truth is

we probably give ourselves

a pass when we shouldn't.

Self-examination

is something that takes

some time and some care

and some real deliberate thinking

about where we are spiritually.

So let's kind of

get into that a little further

and say this.

Self-examination

is less painful

than the alternatives.

Will you note that down?

Self-examination

is less painful.

Less painful,

spirit-enabled self-examination

is less painful

than the alternatives.

What do I mean by that?

Just nod your head

if you know what I mean.

I'll say it again.

Spirit-enabled self-examination

is less painful

than the alternatives.

Everybody look up.

Nod your head

if you really do understand this.

Okay?

Here's what I'm saying.

If you're a child of God,

can you keep on

getting away with sin?

Now go this way.

No, you cannot.

You cannot.

And so if we are

persisting in disobedience

and sinful behavior,

what do we know

God will do for us?

What will He do?

Hebrews chapter 12,

Hebrews 12 · chapter mention

13 rather,

says this.

Whom the Lord loves,

He chastens.

And so I want you

to understand that

spirit-enabled

self-examination

is always less painful

than the alternatives.

And so it's wise

for us to do that.

If we are persisting

in our disobedience,

you can be sure

that one of the things

that will flag you

as a genuine believer

is that He will not

let you get away with it.

Listen to me.

If you are a genuine believer

and you are walking

in disobedience,

you will not be able

to persist.

Let's come to another thing.

Spirit-enabled

self-examination

breeds humility

and joy.

Spirit-enabled,

and why would I say

spirit-enabled?

Why would I say that

at the beginning?

Does anybody have an idea?

How many of you

tried self-examination

without the enabling

of the Holy Spirit

and the governance

of the Word of God?

Have you ever done that?

It can be rather superficial

and very counterproductive.

Spirit-enabled

self-examination

is one that relies

upon the Holy Spirit

and relies upon

the Word of God.

And when those things

are actively at work

in our lives,

it breeds humility

and joy.

It invariably prompts us

to recognize

our dependence on Him

and to have a thankfulness

for His grace.

One of the things

that I did

last week in particular

was spend some time

in prayer and review

of what the last year

had been in my own life

and what are some

of the things

that God had brought

to the surface

and admonished

and rebuked me for

and dealt with.

What were some of the things

that He'd helped me grow in?

And without question,

as I look back

over the year,

there was a spirit

of thankfulness

to say,

wow, Lord,

I am thankful

for what You are doing

in my heart

and my life

and I want You

to be the one

who receives the praise

for that.

I want you to also

stop and recognize

that there are things

that help us

to identify

what self-examination

really is characterized by.

So let's talk about

that a little bit.

What are some things

that mark

spirit-enabled

self-examination?

Listen,

it's very easy

for us to be

quite superficial

and say,

well,

check this box.

I have been to church

consistently.

Check.

I have been faithful

in my giving.

Check.

I am one

who practices

all the externals

of religion.

Check.

Does that sound

a little bit like

the Pharisee?

Remember when he was

praying in the temple?

I thank God

I'm not,

you know.

So,

let's talk about

what are some things

that mark

spirit-enabled

self-examination?

For one,

honest prayer

to the Lord.

Lord,

not the garden

variety of

now I lay

me down to sleep.

I hope you give

me a nice pass

for being a good

guy.

It's like,

hey,

Lord,

I really want

to be honest

and I need

your help

to recognize

the things

in my heart

that need

to be changed.

And by the way,

at what age

is that no

longer necessary?

Listen to me

carefully.

Getting old

without the

enabling of the

Holy Spirit

can make you

just kind of

a crotchety,

unhappy individual.

Everybody said

amen,

right?

How do you

want to go

out?

Joyful,

humble,

thankful for

the power

of the Spirit

of God

to continue

the work

of progressive

sanctification

until he

shuts the

engine off.

Humble prayer

to the Lord.

Number one.

Number two.

Stop and think

about the depth

of your love

for your Savior.

When Jesus

spoke to Peter

at the very

end of John

about his

responsibility

of feeding

his sheep,

the context

and the frame

in which he

laid the

responsibility

of what Peter

was to do

with the

remainder of

his life

was what?

Do you

love me?

And so an

honest question

for you to

ask yourself

and ask the

Holy Spirit

to help you

think about

is,

so what is

my genuine

affection for

Christ like?

I want you

to think with

me again

to another

passage in

relationship to

this over in

Revelation chapter

three and don't

turn to it,

but remember

the church at

Laodicea when

the indictment

of Christ

actually fell on

their ears,

what was it?

You have lost

your first love.

And so I would

appeal to you

this morning as

you think about

how do I go

about examining

my heart

honestly?

The question

is this,

do I really

have a love

for the Lord

Jesus?

I'm not

talking about

are you

sitting here?

I'm talking

about does

the thought

of Jesus

actually fill

you with

satisfaction and

delight and

does it cause

you to smile

in the face

of the adversity

of life?

Yesterday,

as we were

passing out

oatmeal to

some people,

one under a

bridge and

another in a

tent,

very interesting,

Greg,

where's Greg?

He's not in

here, Connie,

she's in the

nursery,

okay.

One person,

one person,

how can I pray

for you?

That's one of

the things we

asked, so you're

trying to make a

conversation,

how can I pray

for you?

Well, pray for

our nation is

really divided

and the person

I voted for

did not win.

I mean,

that's what they

wanted me to

pray for.

Very interesting

opportunity to

pray in that

environment,

you know,

and so I took

advantage of it.

You can weave a

prayer into any

kind of prayer.

You can weave the

gospel into any

kind of prayer.

How many of you

learned that?

It's just like,

hey, thank you for

giving me an

opportunity here.

Bang.

The other guy,

living in a tent,

he said, yeah,

you need to pray

that the new

president comes in.

I thought, whoa,

I got one guy under

a bridge who wants

to pray for the

division because his

candidate didn't win.

That's the only thing

he wanted me to pray

for, right?

And the other guy

wants me to pray that

this thing would get

on sooner.

I thought, you guys

have no idea what's

really going on, do you?

Here's the truth.

At the center of our

confidence and security

is the sweetness of our

relationship with Christ.

And if you are a

believer, there is good

reason for your life to

be marked by joy in

Christ and joy in the

Holy Spirit.

Isn't that right?

So when you do a little

self-examination, ask

yourself the question,

how often am I a

moody, unhappy, sullen

person because things

aren't going my way?

Hmm?

If you're a believer,

that is where you need

to be spiritually, your

life is marked by

humility and by joy.

Here's another thing that

is a good test of where

we really are.

Give an honest review of

your attitudes and

responses to those who

are closest to you.

I'll go real slowly

from this one.

Ask the Holy Spirit to

help you in an honest

evaluation of your

attitudes and responses

to those who are

closest to you.

How many of you

understand that it's

fairly easy to be

pretty polite and

civil to your neighbor

that you only see very

occasionally?

Huh?

The one who really

knows your heart best

in a marital situation

goes to bed with you

at night and gets up

with you in the morning,

shares all the details

of life.

And if you're a grumpy

and sullen person,

guess who really knows

best?

Who?

Your husband, your wife,

your children.

And so ask yourself,

do I see in my life as I

engage in self-examination,

do I see a humble,

forgiving, tender,

forbearing spirit that

loves those who God has

put me in close

relationship with?

If not, then it's

appropriate for you to

come back and say,

Lord, I need your help

to have that kind of

attitude.

At the end of the day,

it's very interesting,

when you go through the

book of 1 John,

you'll find that 1 John

is a book that has

a recurring theme,

namely,

how do I know that

I'm really saved?

One of the ways that I

know that I'm really

saved is for my

ongoing affection

for the body of Christ

and for fellow believers.

Do you realize that?

People that are close

to me are the ones

that often are a

greater challenge than

those I only see

occasionally.

And so when I'm engaged

in self-examination,

I ask myself the

question,

so where's my heart

in relationship to

those who are close

to me?

Another thing that I

would encourage you to

do as you engage in

self-examination is

kind of check where

your confident joy in

the Lord is.

Those who walk in

communion with the

Lord will certainly

have storms around

them, but they don't

have to have the storm

in them.

I want you to think

about a couple

different passages in

relationship to this.

And if you will,

turn in your Bible.

You're there in 2 Corinthians

probably.

So turn in your Bible

to 1 Peter 1,

1 Peter 1:6

verse 6.

By the way,

when Peter wrote this,

was he kind of

sitting by the

Mediterranean Sea

kind of anticipating

a good retirement

and all the benefits

of his long-standing

ministry?

No, he was

expected.

He was expecting

to be executed.

Listen to what he says

in verse 6.

In this you rejoice,

though now for a little

while, if necessary,

you've been grieved by

various trials.

In the middle of the

heartaches and challenges

of life, are you one

who is rejoicing in what

God is doing and is

actively involved in doing

in your life?

Look at verse 8.

Though now, though you

have not seen him,

you love him.

Though you do not now

see him, you believe in

him and rejoice with joy

that is inexpressible

and filled with glory,

the characteristic

of a believer

that is in communion

and in sweet relationship

with the Lord Jesus Christ

is their life is marked

by confident joy

in the Lord.

Is that the way it is?

Confident joy

in the Lord.

One other thing

as we think about

self-examination.

Consider how quickly

Scripture comes

to be your counselor,

your correction,

and your comfort.

When you stop and think

about where am I spiritually,

ask yourself this question,

how quickly does Scripture

come to my mind

to be my counselor,

my comfort,

my encouragement,

the challenge to my heart?

Let me have you think

about a passage

in relationship to this.

You're in 1 Peter.

Turn over there

to Colossians 3,

Colossians 3:16

verse 16.

Colossians 3,

Colossians 3:16

verse 16.

Let the word of Christ

dwell in you richly.

Let the word of Christ

dwell in you richly,

teaching and admonishing

one another in all wisdom,

singing psalms and hymns

and spiritual songs

with thankfulness

in your hearts to God.

Let the word of Christ

dwell in you richly.

That word richly means there

to have complete,

to fill everything.

How many of you

have little pantries

at home where you keep

a couple extra cans

of whatever it is

that you're going to have

as part of your supper plan

or whatever?

And you go to that

and there's nothing there.

What do you have to do?

You have to make a journey

to go somewhere else

to get it.

Isn't that right?

You'd rather have it on site

when something comes up

and says,

oh, I need a couple extra

cans of beans

or I need this

or there it is.

It's in the pantry.

The scripture is giving us

encouragement

that we as believers

are to have the word of God

packed into our life

that it is the thing

that dominates us.

And so when you find yourself

in a moment of stress,

when you find yourself

needing encouragement,

when you find yourself

at that point

where you're challenged

by life,

what is it that you rely upon?

What do you go back

and cling to

and rely upon

to be the encourager

and the instructor

of your life?

This morning

as I was sitting here

on the platform

or sitting on the pew

thinking about

the responsibility

of preaching,

I had several different passages

going through my mind.

One was in Isaiah 8,

Isaiah 8:20

verse 20

after Pastor prayed

where it says this.

It says that

if the word of God

is not at the front and center

of the whole thing

being presented,

it's because there is

no light in it.

At the end of the day,

the word of God

is the thing

that is the benchmark,

the standard,

the measuring stick

against which we

evaluate all other things

to be true or not.

And I was thinking

about that passage

also in Isaiah

or in Deuteronomy

where it says this,

that the priest's lips

should get,

it's in Malachi,

sorry, sorry.

Malachi says this,

that the priest's lips

should keep knowledge

for they should seek

the law of God

at his lips.

When a pastor speaks,

at the end of the day,

the thing that should

characterize what he says

is a connection

to the word of God.

Now if that is true

for a pastor,

should it be true

for godly believers

that are part of the fellowship?

What's the answer?

Absolutely.

Absolutely.

Your counsel

should be framed,

you don't have to rattle off

the Bible verse,

but it has to be

the frame of reference

that you're relying upon

to make your point.

And so looking back,

doing some soul searching,

some self-examination

is valuable to the believer,

particularly when it's

complemented with a comfort

and confidence in the Lord.

And so I want us to do that

as a second piece

of our logic.

We're going to examine ourselves

to see whether in their faith,

we're going to examine ourselves

to see whether or not

our hearts are where

they need to be.

Let's do the second part

and that is rely upon Him

and have confidence

in His help.

Turn in your Bibles now

if you would

to 1 Samuel chapter 7

1 Samuel 7:12

verse 12.

1 Samuel chapter 7

1 Samuel 7:12

verse 12.

Self-examination

that is not enabled

by the Spirit of God

is going to breed

complete self-deception.

Self-examination

that does not bring us

to dependence upon Christ

is going to bring us

to discouragement.

And so I want us

to couple our self-examination

with a healthy dose

of confidence

in the Lord and His power.

Go to 1 Samuel chapter 7.

1 Samuel 7 · chapter mention

Any of you that have

worked your way through

Joshua, Judges,

1 and 2 Samuel, etc.,

would have to say

that the history of Israel

is marked by recurring failures.

Isn't that right?

I mean, you read the book

of Judges

and you just kind of

think to yourself,

man, that cycle

is so incessant.

They would kind of

depend upon the Lord.

They would see some progress

in their lives.

They would get confident

and arrogant

and they would fall

into deep sin

and then they would endure

the chastening of God

and just cycle back

and back and back.

1 Samuel chapter 7

1 Samuel 7 · chapter mention

is at one of those points

of heartache

in the nation's history.

They had endured

a very, very poor

high priest's ministry,

Eli,

who instead of

admonishing and correcting

his sons in their wickedness,

he had tolerated it.

And as a result,

he and his children

failed miserably,

but also the nation

struggled as well

in spiritual misbehavior

and idolatry.

And as a result of that,

God brought other people along

to discipline Israel

and to bring them

to humility.

He used the Philistines.

There was a great battle

and in the midst

of the battle,

the Israelites thought,

well, hey,

great idea would be

for us to bring the ark

because if the ark is there,

then God's got to

pull it off for us.

Kind of manipulating God

in this situation.

Have you ever tried that?

Don't raise your hand

and smile at me.

But you know,

Lord, I will do A, B, C

if you will, right?

Israel thought they could

kind of manipulate God

and it didn't work out well.

As a result of that

miserable failure

on the part of Israel,

they endured many years

of spiritual heartache.

And finally we find there

in 1 Samuel chapter 7

1 Samuel 7 · chapter mention

that the house of Israel

finally came to the place

where they lamented

after the Lord.

Look at 1 Samuel chapter 7

1 Samuel 7:2

verse 2.

It says,

And all the house of Israel

lamented after the Lord.

How many of you ever been

at the point in your life

where you have been tired

of the consequences

of your sin

and you cried out

to the Lord

and said,

Lord,

do whatever you think best

but get this nasty heart

back to where it needs to be?

Israel lamented

after the Lord.

Samuel,

the faithful prophet,

comes into the picture

and he says there

in verse 3,

If you're returning

to the Lord

with all your heart,

then put away

the foreign gods,

the Asheroth

among you,

and direct your heart

to the Lord

and serve Him only.

And as a result

of their plea

and the counsel of Samuel,

the nation of Israel

obediently began

to pursue the Lord

and when that news

got out to the Philistines,

the Philistines decided,

All right,

we're going to come back

and try to oppress them again.

What happened?

Now God was on their side

and you read there

in verse 7,

Now when the Philistines,

this is verse 7

of chapter 7,

when the Philistines

heard that the people

of Israel had gathered

at Mizpah,

the lords of the Philistines

went up against Israel

and when the people

of Israel heard of it,

they were afraid.

The people of Israel

said to Samuel,

Do not cease to cry out

to the Lord our God

for us that He may save us

from the hand

of the Philistines.

What happened?

Samuel prayed.

Samuel offered sacrifice

and God divinely intervened

for the sake of the nation

and protected

and preserved them

and after that great battle

and that success,

we find that Samuel

called for a time

of offering

and sacrifice

and praise.

Look at verse 12.

Then Samuel took a stone

and set it up

between Mizpah and Shem

and called its name

Ebenezer.

Now, question,

how many of you remember

when we used to sing

that song,

Here I raise my Ebenezer?

Ebenezer.

And some of the modern hymn books

have just taken it out

because we don't make

that translation.

It's not hard.

Ebenezer means what?

Hitherto hath the Lord

brought us.

One of the things

that Israel did

on a regular basis,

they were into

stacking stones.

Now, one of the things

you know about stacks

of stones is they don't

happen by themselves.

Do you understand that?

They just don't pile up

by themselves.

They may do it

on cartoons,

but they don't do it

in real life.

And so when you saw

a pile of stones,

you thought,

that's about something.

I wonder what that is.

Classic illustration

of that would be

that when the nation

of Israel

crossed the Jordan

on dry land,

what did Joshua

tell the nation

to do?

Pick out 12

husky guys.

By the way,

I need four strong men

to help move a...

Some of you are

laughing at this,

but I do.

I need four strong men

after the morning service

to go into the

multipurpose room

to help bring a large

credenza into the

conference room.

There we go.

So Joshua said,

I want 12 strong guys.

I want each of them

to pick up a big stone

and carry it out

to dry land.

And what did they do

with those stones?

They built a pile of them

on dry land,

and there was another one

in the middle of the river.

So later on,

years from now

or years in the future,

the children of Israel

would look at that pile.

What's this all about?

Well,

there's a pile just like that

in the middle of the river,

and we crossed on dry land.

A reminder.

And here is Samuel saying,

I want us to build

this pile of stones,

and what I want...

I'll put a big stone up.

He says,

I want us to call

this stone

Ebenezer,

because this is how far

God has brought us.

On the heels of that great

and supernatural victory,

Samuel wanted the nation

of Israel to remember

for all time,

this is what God has done

for us.

Why is that important?

Because there will be

other times

where we will forget

what God has done.

And in the middle

of some of our heartache

and our difficulty,

we're going to forget

that He is on our side

and He's at work for us.

Right now,

if you read the news,

you will understand

that Israel is in a hard place.

Would you agree with that?

Israel is in a hard place

in our world perspective.

And as I look at that,

I am reminded

that the God of Abraham

who made a promise

in Genesis chapter 12

Genesis 12 · chapter mention

has not changed His mind

regarding His people.

And God will take care

of the nation of Israel.

And because of His faithfulness

to the nation of Israel,

Tim Kenoyer has confidence

that He will keep

His promises to me as well.

And that pile of stones

that Samuel set up,

that pile,

that big stone

that he set up,

he said, listen,

this is a reminder,

this is what God

has done for us.

And so it's fitting for us,

practically speaking,

as a group of people,

to stop and think,

all right,

what has God done?

What has He done?

And what are things

that we can give Him thanks for?

So let's think about

the things that we can

thank God for.

For one,

I have to tell you

as I think about 2016

and the years actually

behind that,

I am very thankful

to the Lord

that He directed

this congregation's heart

regarding a transition plan

and that this congregation

voted in complete unanimity

to proceed with that process.

And after about

a two-year search process,

He brought us

a senior pastor-elect.

That is not

some light thing.

And I'm thankful for it.

And I trust you remain

with that spirit of thankfulness.

Furthermore,

I would say that

as I look back over the year,

I am thankful

that He has worked

in our hearts

to give us

a deliberate attention

to the needs of others

and to help us grow

in this area.

We're not where we want to be,

but we're not where we used to be.

And I'm thankful for that.

I think of just this last fall

when we entertained

the Franklin County

Board of Elections

and week after week

after week,

our small groups

brought suppers in

for that group of people

and served them willingly.

Do you know what they did?

Instead,

they invited me to a banquet

that I tried to get

Pastor Shearer

or Pastor Andrew

to go to instead of me.

I even asked Pastor Saul

if he would go.

And in front of a whole

roomful of people,

they gave this church

an award for being

the most civic-minded group

of blah, blah, blah.

You know,

wow!

We served them.

Did we do it for a token

and a little plaque?

I don't even know where it is.

It's in my truck.

It's in my truck.

I'm not hanging it up.

We've grown.

We made headway.

Thank the Lord for that.

He has helped us

increase our impact

in the community

through things like Awana.

We've had a lot more

young people in Awana

this year than last year.

He has helped us

in Thursday evening basketball.

And I'm thankful for that.

Thursday evenings,

there is a crowd of guys

who come in here

and play basketball.

By the way,

since Joel Dobney

decided there's going

to be a police officer,

Lord willing,

he handed that off to me.

I went in a couple weeks ago

and I'm with the guys in there

and they said,

so you're Joel's replacement.

I said,

well,

yeah.

They said,

well,

you're going to have to sub in.

I said,

no way.

I'm sitting over here

on the side.

I'll be present,

but that's it.

And I have an opportunity

week after week

to share the gospel

with people

that don't hear it

any other way.

And by the way,

if you'd like to join me,

let me know.

I'll get you involved.

There are other ways

in which we are growing

in our attention

to the needs of people

around us

week after week.

Quiet little activities

that you engage in

as God's people

in meeting the needs

of people

that are right there

in your neighborhood

that you know

need Christ

and you're building

those bridges

for their sake.

Beloved,

all of this

has been the work

of God in us

and we want to give

Him credit for it.

And it's fitting for us

as we look back

by self-examination

to say,

man,

there's a ways

for me to go

and I need to grow.

But at the same time,

it's appropriate

for us to look back

and say,

look what God has done

and the blessings

that He's produced

in our life

and we're thankful

for that.

So let me bring it

to a close

and have you think

with me very practically

about how this applies

to you.

Truth of the matter

is that you are here

in one of two conditions.

I would believe

that the vast majority

of you are here today

and you know Christ

as your Savior

and self-examination

along with thanksgiving

is to characterize

your life moving forward.

I see what God has done.

I know there's more to do

and I renew my commitment

to Him

to grow to be the person

that He wants me to be.

That's a believer.

I don't want to play games

spiritually.

I want to be

who He wants me to be.

But there are some of you

here today

that do not know Christ

and so self-examination

this morning

is a matter of bringing you

to conviction

to recognize

that the truth of the matter

is this,

is that if you were

to die tonight

and God were to say

why should I let you

into heaven,

you wouldn't have an answer.

I got to tell you

if you would recommend to me

that you've been

a pretty good person,

I'll tell you this,

Jesus died on the cross

because there are

no good people.

Scripture says this,

all have sinned

and come short

of the glory of God

and there's no hope

for an individual

making it into heaven

on the basis

of their own efforts.

Christ Jesus came

into the world

to save sinners

and only those

who come to Christ

in humility

and say,

I know I'm a sinner

and need Jesus

as my Savior

are the ones

who find everlasting life.

So at the beginning

of the year,

this is January the 1st,

if you're a believer,

it's a matter of,

Lord,

is there work

to do in my life?

Yes.

Can I trust you

to help me?

Yes.

I am committed to grow.

And if you're here

as a person

who does not know Christ,

today is the day

to trust Him

and plead for salvation.

Let's close in prayer.

Our Father,

we are thankful

this morning

for the clarity

with which you make it

plain to us

that we are a people

who need the Lord Jesus Christ

as our Savior.

we're thankful

that you have saved

so many of us

here today.

We're thankful

that we can examine

ourselves

with the power

of the Holy Spirit

and make commitments

to grow in our walk

with you.

I'm thankful also,

Father,

for the privilege

of being able

to share the gospel

and to have

complete confidence

that Christ Jesus

came into the world

to save sinners

and that this morning

is the hour

in which people

may call upon

the name of the Lord

and find salvation

through Him alone.

We ask this in Jesus' name.

Amen.