Tag Archives: faith

Getting Rich Quick! Guaranteed!

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I Timothy 6:6-12—Dr. Denny—DBC—September 29, 2019

Introduction:  George C. Parker was a con man plain and simple.  Of course, he had many other con names he used such as James J. O’Brien, Warden Kennedy, Mr. Roberts, and Mr. Taylor.[4]  But he was George C. Parker.  He was born in NYC to Irish parents.  He had four brothers and three sisters and was a high school graduate.  (I wonder how many teachers he drove crazy).  George C. Parker believed in getting rich quick.  No long days toiling in a factory for him.
Brooklyn Bridge.jpg

One day he had a brilliant idea:  I will sell the Brooklyn Bridge.  He tried to play devil’s advocate: ‘You can’t do that.  You don’t own it!’.  But none of that slowed him down.  So he put it up for sale.  His suckers were often immigrants who had a little money and knew nothing of the rule of law or the American system.  He was very convincing.  He made up fake documents that looked real.  He didn’t just sell the bridge once.  He sold over and over.  The police came once and arrested the victims who thought the bridge was theirs and were setting up toll booths.

Background:  Paul made it clear to young Timothy.  ‘Just forget George C. Parker.  Forget the Brooklyn Bridge.  Give up this love of money and riches.  Just learn to live simply with what you have’. 

But make no mistake.  Paul wants you to be rich—filthy rich.  And he has a formula that you can follow.  It’s just like baking a cake—do this and this and this.  Paul has a formula for a life rich in contentment and happiness.  I am going to share that formula with you this morning.

  1. Quickly Flee (v11). There are times in our lives when we have to get up and run for all we can.  When you’re lounging on the beach and you see a tsunami coming you can’t finish the chapter in your novel. You have to get up and run.  And Paul says if you want to be truly rich you have to have times of flight.  Since Paul is talking about money in the previous verses this is clearly one thing wants you to know.  Flee the money trap, he says.  Don’t get caught in its snare.  It will ruin your life.  The love of money is the root of all evil, he says and the sooner you get running from it the happier you will be.

            *Lao Tzu, a Chinese philosopher of the 6th century BC said this:  “He who is contented is rich.  Be content with what you have; rejoice in the way things are.  When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you.”

Paul said the same thing in verses 6-8. READ. 

            *Lucius Cincinnatus was a hero of ancient Rome.  He was a simple farmer who loved nothing better than the simple life beneath the sun out in his fields, breathing the country air.  But one day when Rome was about to attacked and the citizens didn’t know what to do. They ran out to his farm and begged for his help. They made him dictator for 6 months –all-powerful.  He put his plow down. Raced into the city and ordered every able-bodied man to come with weapons to the forum.  Cincinatus.jpgWithin 15 days he put down the insurrection, defeated the enemy and then—well what did he do next?  He was all-powerful.  He could do anything he wanted.  He was dictator for 6 months.  What did he do?  He tossed all of that to the ground and went home to his farm and his plow and his chickens and fresh air.  He didn’t want anything more.  He was contented with the simple life.   *(George Washington called Cincinnatus when the Revolutionary war was over).

  1. Urgently Pursue: Paul’s formula for riches included a paradox.  He said I want you to flee but I also want you to pursue.  Flee the trap of money but pursue the six pillars of happiness and success.  He lists them in verse 11—READ TEXT.  ———–

Can we do both at the same?  Can we flee but pursue?  Yes.  We flee from something but run toward something.  If you want to be truly rich as God defines wealth, then you have to spend your life pursuing the six pillars of happiness:  righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness. 

This is a diet rich in all the essential nutrients for robust health and riches.  There are at least six sermons in this one verse.  Pursuing these pillars is like losing weight.  You don’t have to lose it all in one day and you can pursue these six goals over your lifetime.

 Pick one a day.  On Monday focus on gentleness—Tuesday select godliness—Wednesday think often about love– and pursue faith on Thursday.  Slip into righteousness on Friday and for the weekend pursue perseverance.

Paul’s message here is simple:  Life without pursuit is empty and meaningless.  You must pursue—Just don’t pursue money and Brooklyn Bridge deals and get rich quick schemes.  Pursue the pillars of happiness.

  1. Continuously Fight (v12)— There is a time to stop running and fight.  Paul says, “Fight the good fight of faith.”  There is a time to fight.

*When I was in second grade just before my family moved to Japan, I lived in Sumpter SC.  Each day I loved to go out on the playground at recess.  There were woods off in the distance and I loved to run through the woods.  But there was a bully out there always waiting for me.  I got to where I hated going on the play-ground.  I didn’t know how to fight so I was afraid.  But one day Big Becky came to my defense.  She was a huge 5th grader with biceps.  She was tough.  And when she heard my story she set out after the bully and sent him flying.

In Eph 6:11 Paul said, Put on the full armor of God so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil…

In other words, there is a time to fight.

Conclusion:

So we started off this morning with George C. Parker selling the Brooklyn Bridge because he wasn’t content with his life.  He wanted to get rich quick.  It resulted in him spending his life in Sing Sing Prison in NY.

Let’s do better than that.  Let’s find the true riches that God offers.  Let’s flee the love of money and learn to live with contentment.  Let’s Pursue the pillars of happiness and let’s fight the true fight of faith resisting the devil’s snares that will only bring us down.

 

 

 

 

Waiting for the Whirlwind

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Waiting for the Whirlwind.2 Kings 2: 11-14–June 30, 2019—DBC. Dr. Denny

Introduction:  I’m going to start with a question and I don’t want you to stretch the truth (like fish stories—I caught one this. Big).   Just be honest.  Ready?  How long did it take you to run your last marathon?  The fastest marathon was set in 2018 at 2 hours, 1 min and 39 seconds by a Kenyan.  The slowest marathon was set in 2003 by Lloyd Scott who took 6 days, 30 min and 56 seconds. (He was wearing a 130 lb. deep-sea diving suit and he said he got food poising and so he had to keep stopping to go the bathroom and it took him forever to get out the suit etc.).
whirlwind.jpg

Background and commentary:  This morning we will follow Elijah who walks a marathon to his whirlwind departure from this world.  The distance he travels from Gilgal to the Jordan River is about 26 miles so I wanted to put it into perspective so you could understand how this amazing story unfolded.  This is a tale of life and death and since we all only have so many years and days allotted to us by God we want to make the most of the days we have.  But make no mistake:  we will all do what Elijah did on this last day of his life.  We will walk one day to the very edge of life and then we will be gone, swept up in a final exit to eternity. 

  1. Gilgal to Bethel—8 miles. Elijah lived such an incredible life.  He was a man of enormous spiritual power.  He had command of nature like Jesus did.     *Once after years of famine, he stood on the edge of Mt Carmel that looked out over the Mediterranean sea and called for rain.  He bowed his face to the ground between his knees and prayed for rain.  After each prayer, he sent his servant to the edge of the cliff to peer out over the sea scanning the horizon for a cloud.  7 times Elijah bowed and prayed and on the seventh time the servant reported back.  “I see a cloud, so tiny, so distant, like a small hand.”  Run for your life shouted Elijah and before they knew it the clouds were black and torrent fell from the heavens.  Elijah sprinted the 17 miles back to safety in Jezreel.

But in our story today God has whispered an electrifying statement into his ear—“Elijah.  Today is your final day.”  Just as He will whisper to you one day. When Elijah hears this private message from the Lord, he sets in motion his final activities.  He calls Elisha his prophet in training and asks him politely to remain while he travels to Bethel about 8 miles southeast.  It is as I see it an act of profound kindness to the younger prophet.  He doesn’t want to alarm him or frighten him by telling him that today he will die.  He simply asks to remain at Gilgal while he makes a quick trip to town.  It is difficult to watch a loved one fade away and often little is said in the last hours. Elijah too feels a sense of solitude and silence and he wants to walk alone.  But Elisha will have none of it.  He won’t leave the prophet’s side who makes no objection to the young man following him.

When Elijah arrives at Bethel the school of prophets in the town run out to see him for somehow they know what is about to happen.  They don’t approach the venerable Elijah for his a man you don’t confront without permission.  Instead, they run to Elisha with their chatter and speculation.  But Elisha refuses to entertain them.    It is a solemn day and he won’t have it disturbed by gossiping students.  “Quiet!” he shouts to them.  “Hush!” says the Hebrew text.

  1. Bethel to Jericho—Our final day is often a journey revealed only in moments. Elijah stood in Bethel awaiting direction.  Then God says to him:  “Go down to Jericho.”12 miles down the mountain—a descent of nearly 3000 feet to the Jordan valley.  But once again he urges Elisha to remain behind.  Again the young man refuses and shares the journey with the dying man.  *So many times I have been the young man walking to the brink with an older person. So many times I have been by the bedside or said a final prayer not long before the whirlwind came and took them away.  It is a sacred time and Elisha wanted to share it and Elijah was happy for the company.  And once again when they arrived at the town of Jericho flocks of religious students rushed to see the prophet chattering and squawking.  Elisha told them to “Hush!”  It is a quiet time.  Be silent.”  And so once again Elijah waited for God to guide him on for even a journey’s end is often unclear. We don’t know if we will leave in the morning or at noon or in the long night’s reverie.  But then as always, God whispers the words we need.  He is there with us on in our last hours and He shows us the way.
  2. Jericho to Jordan–And so he says to Elijah, go down to the Jordan. And Elijah one last time tried to spare the young prophet of the sorrow of the final departure.  But Elisha says no.  I will not leave you.  And so the final 6 miles down to the Jordan commences.  The two prophets walk alone until their feet wriggle in the river’s edge. Off to the right in the distance, they see Mt. Nebo where Moses stood and glanced longingly oat the promised land and then died, forbidden to cross over.  They remembered that it was at this very place the Ark of the Covenant had parted the river as the Israelites crossed into the Promised land led by Joshua. But now the journey takes them back across into Gilead where Elijah was born.  He is going home.  He knows the mountains in the distance and he remembers the history of this very place.

Then, in an explosive moment in time, Elijah took off his mantle and struck the river which shuddered at the command and split apart instantly.  The two men walked across the dry river bed as their ancestors had done.  And then Elijah turns to Elisha and makes a profound statement.  “Ask what I shall do for you before I am taken from you.”  This profound moment brimming with intimate generosity displays for us the heart of the old prophet.  Such love and kindness he offers to the young man.  Ask me for something.  Anything. And it shall be yours., he said to him.   What would you ask for in such a rarified hour?  Elisha doesn’t hesitate for a second.  His request comes from a heart of gold who only intent is to honor the prophet and God.  “I want to like you, he says.  Just give me a double portion of your spirit.”  And the old man was shocked but pleased.  “If God wills it when I am gone it will be so.

  1. The Whirlwind—Suddenly as they were considering the request, walking casually along away from the Jordan, a chariot of fire pulled by a team of fiery horses separates the two men. Elisha falls back enraptured at the sight before him.  The great whirlwind spins the chariot of fire heavenward and within seconds it is gone and Elisha is left behind hearing only the sounds of the desert wind blowing softly against the mantle that lay at his feet.

Conclusion:  One day your whirlwind will come for you.  Will you be ready?  Will your final day be filled with kindness, generosity, happy remembrances?  This can only be so if you have faith in Christ who died for you on the cross.  Don’t let your whirlwind catch you by surprise. Make your peace with God now.