Today I listened to 2 sermons by Andy Stanley. They are the first 2 in a 4 part series where he was challenging those on the outside looking in of a relationship with Christ to begin that relationship. At first thought, you might think that there really wouldn't be a whole lot in a sermon like that for the believer, and though he never spoke to believers directly, I took so much from it.
His premise in the first sermon was that many people have a list of questions that they need answered to believe. This never happens as getting the answers doesn't cause you to believe. Answers just make you a smarter unbeliever. It takes life making the need personal to overlook the questions. In the second, he speaks of how we want to come to God on our own terms. He simply just wants us to believe.
For me this just hit home in the daily aspects of my life. "Lord, if you answer this and this, I will trust you." or "Lord, take care of this, and I will do that." Why do we put so much into giving God conditions. Maybe they are even subconscious. How much better would it be for us to subconsciously just shut up, trust and do.
Then he posed the question I titled this post with. Would we really want to believe and serve a God who was so small that He followed our whims? Why should the God who made this vast creation from nothing need to follow our guidelines for us to trust and obey.
Matthew 18:3-4 (in the NIV 'cause that's what I can reach) says:
"And He said: 'Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore whoever takes a humble place---becoming like this child--is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.'"
So, do we approach Him humbly? Do we realize our position in the universe. We have the amazing and awesome privilege of serving the God who is above all. Nothing can be greater. Now it is time to be humble, get ourselves out of the way and trust Him.
