Dear Church Family and Friends,
I have never written a letter like this one before where I share the notes from a previous Sunday Mornings Message, but I felt impressed to share this as we go into the upcoming weekend with Kim Wieler from Canada.
THE MOTHER OF ALL SIN’S
Galatians 5:13 Amplified Bible
For you, my brothers, were called to freedom; only do not let your freedom become an opportunity for the sinful nature (worldliness, selfishness), but through love serve and seek the best for one another.
Philippians 2:3,4 Amplified Bible
Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit [through factional motives, or strife], but with [an attitude of] humility [being neither arrogant nor self-righteous], regard others as more important than yourselves.
Philippians 2:1-4 The Message
He Took on the Status of a Slave
If you’ve gotten anything at all out of
following Christ, if his love has made
any difference in your life, if being in a
community of the Spirit means anything
to you, if you have a heart, if you care—
then do me a favor: Agree with each
other, love each other, be deep-spirited
friends. Don’t push your way to the
front; don’t sweet-talk your way to the
top. Put yourself aside, and help others
get ahead. Don’t be obsessed with
getting your own advantage.
Forget yourselves long enough to
Lend a helping hand.
James 4:3 The Message
“You ask [God for something] and don’t
receive it, because you ask with wrong
motives [out of selfishness or with an
unrighteous agenda], so that [when you
get what you want] you may spend it on
your [hedonistic] desires.
Galatians 5:16-18 The Message
“My counsel is this: Live freely,
animated and motivated by God’s
Spirit. Then you won’t feed the
compulsions of selfishness. For
there is a root of sinful self-interest in
us that is at odds with a free spirit,
just as the free spirit is incompatible
with selfishness.
These two ways of life are contrary to
each other, so that you cannot live at
times one way and at times another
way according to how you feel on any
given day.
Why don’t you choose to be led by the
Spirit and so escape the erratic
compulsions of a law-dominated
existence? * * *”
MY JOB AS A PASTOR IS TO KEEP YOU HEADING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION....
From week to week, I must be aware that some may have made a wrong turn on the way to Heaven.
HOW BAD IS SELF WILL?
SELF WILL, TURNED PARADISE INTO A DESERT.
So Lot looked and saw that the valley of the Jordan was well watered everywhere—this was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah; [it was all] like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, as you go to Zoar [at the south end of the Dead Sea].
GENESIS 13:10
REMEMBER LOT? REMEMBER LOT’S WIFE?
SELF WILL, SHUTS OUT THE BLESSINGS OF GOD.
NUMBERS 20:11
11 Then Moses raised his hand [in anger] and with his rod he struck the rock twice [instead of speaking to the rock as the Lord had commanded]. And the water poured out abundantly, and the congregation and their livestock drank [fresh water]. 12 But the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you have not believed (trusted) Me, to treat Me as holy in the sight of the sons of Israel, you therefore shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.”
Disobedience caused the children of Israel to beg the King of Edom for water, if Moses would have only spoke to the rock as was instructed water would have flowed freely. What we see here is that Moses disobedience, created a problem for the God’s people.
SELF WILL, BRINGS PUNISHMENT
1ST SAMUEL
MOTHER OF ALL SINS: SELFISHNESS
Cleddie Alton Keith
In order to be baptized you have to be dead. I baptized people who never left their past behind. The mother of all sins is selfishness.
We were formed in our mother’s womb. Fearfully and wonderfully made. But we are selfish it is the manifestation of the human will.
“To thine own self be true.” Came from Shakespeare. Advice from a father to a son going off to college he tells him, “Son, to thine own self be true.” I see a problem in America now. Be true to greed, fame, fashion and Capitalism. Some may be true to themselves when, it is their nature to be Timid and Bashful.
ARE YOU TRULY FREE? Once again listen to Galatians 5: 13-15
“You my brothers are called to freedom. Only do not let your freedom become opportunity for worldliness and selfishness. But through love seek the best for each other. You have to take the low road. Prefer another’s best over your own.
Do nothing through factional motives or strife. For you, my brothers, were called to freedom; only do not let your freedom become an opportunity for the sinful nature (worldliness, selfishness), but through love serve and seek the
best for one another. For the whole Law [concerning human relationships] is fulfilled in one precept, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself [that is, you shall have an unselfish concern for others and do things for their benefit].” But if you bite and devour one another [in bickering and strife], watch out that you [along with your entire fellowship] are not consumed by one another.”
ATTITUDE OF SELFISHNESS VS CHRISTLIKE NATURE
“Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit [through factional motives, or strife], but with [an attitude of] humility [being neither arrogant nor self-righteous], regard others as more important than yourselves.
Do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this same attitude in yourselves which was in Christ Jesus [look to Him as your example in selfless humility], who, although He existed in the form and unchanging essence of God [as One with Him, possessing the fullness of all the divine attributes—the entire nature of deity], did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped or asserted [as if He did not already possess it, or
was afraid of losing it].” Philippians 2:3-6 AMP
ASKING WITH SELFISH MOTIVES
“You ask [God for something] and do not receive it, because you ask with wrong motives [out of selfishness or with an unrighteous agenda], so that [when you get what you want] you may spend it on your [hedonistic] desires.”
James 4:3 AMP
SPIRIT OF GOD IS AT ODDS WITH SPIRIT OF SELFISHNESS
“It is absolutely clear that God has called you to a free life. Just make sure that you don’t use this freedom as an excuse to do whatever you want to do and destroy your freedom. Rather, use your freedom to serve one another in love; that’s how freedom grows. For everything we know about God’s Word is summed up in a single sentence: Love others as you love yourself. That’s an act of true freedom. If you bite and ravage each other, watch out—in no time at all you will be
annihilating each other, and where will your precious freedom be then? My counsel is this: Live freely, animated and motivated by God’s Spirit. Then you won’t feed the compulsions of selfishness. For there is a root of sinful self-interest in us that is at odds with a free spirit, just as the free spirit is incompatible with selfishness. These two ways of life are contrary to each other, so that you cannot live at times one way and at times another way according to how you feel on
any given day. Why don’t you choose to be led by the Spirit and so escape the erratic compulsions of a law-dominated existence? * * *” Galatians 5:13,16 MSG
ASKING FOR DIRECTIONS: HOW TO GET TO A CERTAIN DESTINATION
You might stop and ask for directions. Today if I asked you what the shortest distance between two points it is a straight line. I have been given directions that took me the roundabout way to get to my destination.
It is my job to give you easy to follow directions to Heaven. Some give confusing directions in regards on how to get to heaven.
SELF WILL
Turned Sodom and Gomorrah turned to ashes.
Gen 13:10
1st Samuel 13:10-15
It is in this text you find the demise of Saul when he took it on himself, to make a sacrifice when it was the only the priest who were allowed to do this.
“ As soon as he finished offering the burnt offering, [a]Samuel finally came; Saul went out to meet and to [b]welcome him. 11 But Samuel said, “What have you done?” Saul said, “Since I saw that the people were scattering away from me, and that you did not come within the appointed time, and that the Philistines were assembling at Michmash, 12 therefore, I said, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not asked for the Lord’s favor [by
making supplication to Him].’ So I forced myself to offer the burnt offering.” 13 Samuel said to Saul, “You have acted foolishly; you have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which He commanded you, for [if you had obeyed] the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. 14 But now your kingdom shall not endure. The Lord has sought out for Himself a man (David) after His own heart, and the Lord has appointed him as
leader and ruler over His people, because you have not kept (obeyed) what the Lord commanded you.”
NOTE TO SELF;
You can shut down the blessing of God in your life by your own self will.
SELF WILL
1 Sam 15:23
You can be Living on your own agenda and be Punished for it. Self-will brings punishment and injury to others.
• Peter cut off ear of man who came to take Jesus away.
• Prodigal being SELF WILLED wanted his blessing before they were distributed to him at his father’s death. It was when he was eating the husk left over after the pigs had already had their meals that he came to Himself. Listen to the cry of a man who realized he had abandoned the good for what was accursed.
“I PERISH WITH HUNGER!!!”
You are perishing apart from God.
EVEN JESUS SAID THIS IN:
John 5:30-31
I can of my own self do nothing except what I see my father doing. THIS IS AGAPE LOVE IN MOTION HE WAS SURRENDERED TO THE WILL OF THE FATHER COMPLETELY AGAPE LOVE. Disinterested unselfishness. Unselfish Love is agape love.
HAVE YOU EVER READ THIS IN THE MESSAGE BIBLE? I FIND IT VERY ENLIGHTENING.
Proverbs 15:23...
“Who are the people who are always crying the blues? Who do you know who reeks of self- pity? Who keeps getting beaten up for no reason at all? Whose eyes are bleary and bloodshot?
It’s those who spend the night with a bottle, for whom drinking is serious business. Don’t judge wine by its label, or its bouquet, or its full-bodied flavor. Judge it rather by the hangover it leaves you with— the splitting headache, the queasy stomach. Do you really prefer seeing double, with your speech all slurred, Reeling and seasick, drunk as a sailor? “They hit me,” you’ll say, “but it didn’t hurt; they beat on me, but I didn’t feel a thing. When I’m sober enough to manage it, bring me another drink!”
Some reek with alcohol. Some reek with self-pity. I’ve been in a lot of churches where they reek with pit to such a degree that they should go ahead and announce their Pity Parties on Sundays and Mid-week. Forever wanting handouts. Always begging.
Who keeps getting beat up for no reason at all? They are beating themselves up.
Self-pity can be self-inflicted.
The Bible speaks of these things that should be dealt with.
Self-serving.
Self-important.
Self- Controlled
Self- Destructive
Self- Centered
Self- Pity
Self- Willed
Self- Saved man
Self- Made man
Luke 6:25
Trouble ahead if you’re satisfied with yourself.
Not content. Pressing ahead.
I am satisfied with a Divine Dis-satisfaction
Jesus’ primary concern was his disciples. The 12 men.
My primary concern is Heritage.
Watch, so you don’t get contaminated by Pharisees yeast. People don’t know the difference
between the leaven and the unleavened.
PHARISEE YEAST
In the meantime, after so many thousands of the people had gathered that they were stepping on one another, Jesus began speaking first of all to His disciples, “Be continually on your guard against the leaven of the Pharisees [that is, their pervasive, corrupting influence and teaching], which is hypocrisy [producing self-righteousness].
Luke 12:1 AMP
PHONINESS
“By this time the crowd, unwieldy and stepping on each other’s toes, numbered into the thousands. But Jesus’ primary concern was his disciples. He said to them, “Watch yourselves carefully so you don’t get contaminated with Pharisee
yeast, Pharisee phoniness. You can’t keep your true self hidden forever; before long you’ll be exposed. You can’t hide behind a religious mask forever; sooner or later the mask will slip, and your true face will be known. You can’t whisper one thing in private and preach the opposite in public; the day’s coming when those whispers will be repeated all over town.”
Luke 12:1 - MSG
- watch that you don’t become contaminated by that which is not the true complete gospel. People obsessed with measuring their muscles. Some Church people never get around to doing anything for God. Don’t exercise what God put in them.
I HAVE LEARNED THE MORE I DO THE MORE I SEEM TO HAVE THE POWER TO DO.
Obsession with self is dead end. Naval gazing. Attention to God leads us to open free life. Person Absorbed in self ignores God. Ignores what God is doing. I don’t want God to ignore me. I don’t want to live a selfish life. When I was young, I fought to win. Played to win. My self dominated life controlled me. When I gave my heart to God my mother said there’s going to be times when God says, “Son, come back down with me to the potters house. And I’ll make you and shape you all over again.” OBEDIENCE to God will slay every giant of selfishness.
When I finished the message Sunday Morning. I had an unusual thing happen to me. I was reading a scripture and it was like a prescription of what God wanted from us as a church family. This is the reason I am sharing my notes from Sunday Morning 7/17/2022. Here in is the verse that came to me after the message yesterday.
Joshua 3:1-5
3 1-4 Joshua was up early and on his way from Shittim with all the People of Israel with him. He arrived at the Jordan and camped before crossing over. After three days, leaders went through the camp and gave out orders to the people: “When you see the Covenant-Chest of God, your God, carried by the Levitical priests, start moving. Follow it. Make sure you keep a proper distance between you and it, about half a mile—be sure now to keep your distance! —and you’ll
see clearly the route to take. You’ve never been on this road before.” 5 Then Joshua addressed the people: “Sanctify yourselves. Tomorrow God will work miracle-
wonders among you.”
Other translations translated it like this; set yourselves apart, consecrate yourselves. Get Ready God’s about to do something.
Thank you for your continued support and prayers for Heritage Fellowship.
I believe in you,
Pastor’s Cleddie and GayNell Keith