SWYC 2017: Surrender - Moment by Moment

<p>Free sharing permitted under the Creative Commons <a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/us/">BY-NC-ND 3.0 (US)</a> license.</p>

GYC Southwest

Morning Devotional

Angeline D. Brauer

The Purpose of Surrender

Dear Heavenly Father, Lord, we come to you on your Sabbath day, these holy hours, in the very early morning, Lord, because we are seeking for bread.

Lord, we want the sustenance from heaven.

I pray that you will energize us for this day.

For this moment, Lord, as we open up your word, give us a message for each 1 of us individually.

Help us, Lord, to be changed as we study your word.

So our theme for this week is surrender, moment by moment, surrender.

You know, as I took on the role of leadership for SWIC years ago, it was a moment where I had to absolutely surrender everything that was meaningful to me.

And by that, I mean I had to surrender myself, my desires, my hopes, my dreams, because God had something different in mind.

But what I have realized is that surrender is as important as the act of surrender is.

So this morning, we're going to look at a story in the Bible and learn maybe something a little surprising about the purpose of surrender And if there's 1 thing that we fail to surrender, it may actually set us up for failing in other areas.

Let's take our Bibles and go to 1 of my absolute favorite books, which is the Book of Daniel.

Now, for young people and for all, if there's 1 book in the Bible that you need to study, you need to study all of them, but if there's 1, I would recommend the book of Daniel.

And you're probably already thinking, oh I know what you're going to say.

We're going to review it again as we talk about surrendering for a purpose.

So Daniel chapter 1 and we're gonna read much of this chapter together in verses 1 and 2.

In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah came Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, unto Jerusalem and besieged it.

And the Lord gave Jehoiakim, king of Judah, into his hand with part of the vessels of the house of God, which he, King Nebuchadnezzar, carried into the land of Shinar, to the house of his God.

And he brought the vessels into the treasure house of his God.

We're familiar with the background of the story.

In fact, we know King Jehoiakim was actually a wicked king.

And though God had sent prophets and messages to them time and time, yet they rebelled.

And finally God said, there's only 1 way to get you back to me.

And so he sent the Babylonians to defeat them, to take them captive, and not only that, but to take the very precious vessels from the temple, take them away, and they were defiled by being put in the house of the pagan gods.

And to Israel, to the Jews, this was probably 1 of the worst things that could ever happen because now their entire identity was destroyed.

It was a long march to the land of Shinar, to Babylon.

In fact, what the, I guess, archaeologists believe is that they would have traveled not directly straight from Jerusalem to Babylon, because that would have taken them through the desert, but they would have gone a circuitous route, going along the river, trying to stay closer to the land of, you know, plush and so that they, because they were walking, most of them, right?

So this journey would have taken probably about 6 months.

So think about the Israelites who had been captured, walking, they were not allowed to ride the horses, I'm sure.

They didn't have the carriages, but they Walked day after day for 6 months, taken to a foreign land.

What do you think was going on through the mind of the Israelites at this time?

What were the thoughts, the emotions going through them.

They were the chosen people of God, and yet they had been subjected and now treated as utter slaves carried away with no hope.

And they were brought to the city of Babylon.

Have you ever wondered what Babylon was like at this time?

Have you seen pictures or have you seen what what the archaeologists have found about Babylon.

It was a square and each side was 14 miles long.

And In fact, it even spanned across the Euphrates River, and a bridge from 1 side to the other was half a mile long.

How did they build a bridge half a mile across in those days?

But not only that, but it was famed for having hanging gardens.

Think about the Euphrates River providing all the water to grow everything.

Now what were the Israelites thinking as they were leaving their travel path and coming and seeing Babylon open up before them with the lush beauty and garden?

Would they have been in awe of that sight?

This is a replica of 1 of the gates from Babylon, 8 massive ones.

There were 2 walls you had to go through to get to the city.

The first wall was 300 feet wide and 25 feet thick.

Whether you like the city or not, it's an impressive sight, isn't it?

Not only that, but Babylon Not only that, but Babylon was a place of worship.

In fact, it was so spiritual that it had 53 temples to various gods and simply to the goddess Ishtar, 150 altars.

But it was a place of worship of many gods.

In fact, Babylon would accept just about any god.

If you had a god, he was welcome to join the club.

And we would set up a tower or an altar, and yes, we'll include him or her in our worship.

It was a place of spirituality, but of pagan false spirituality.

Let's look at what the Bible says of Babylon.

This is King Nebuchadnezzar's words in Daniel chapter 4 as he was gazing about on his beautiful building creation that he had built.

He says, the king spake, is not this great Babylon that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power and for the honor of my majesty.

And then not only that, but Isaiah says this, Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the glory of kingdoms, the prophet of God is calling this city the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees' excellency.

So life in Babylon, rich, luxurious, anything and everything that could stimulate your senses, A mixture of cultures, traditions, and religions.

In fact, the Babylon's prided themselves in bringing in, importing everyone so that they could share their knowledge, their learning, their skills, and their religion.

But let's look and see at what happens to the children of God who come in.

And the king, King Nebuchadnezzar, spake unto Ashpenaz, the master of his eunuchs, that he should bring certain of the children of Israel and of the king's seed and of the princess.

So here the king is isolating the royal blood from Israel.

Verse 4, children in whom was no blemish, well-favored, skillful in wisdom, cunning in knowledge, understanding science, and such as had ability to stand in the king's palace, and whom they might teach the learning and the tongue of the Chaldeans." So The king is looking for the cream of the crop here from the nation, and he wants to put them in his schools so that they will eventually become his servants in his court.

The king appointed them a daily provision of the king's meat and of the wine which he drank, so nourishing them 3 years that at the end thereof they might stand before the king.

Among these were of the children of Judah, remember that, Judah, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, unto whom the prince of the eunuchs gave names.

For he gave unto Daniel the name of Belteshazzar and to Hananiah of Shadrach and to Mishael of Meshach and to Azariah of Abednego.

He said these individuals, these young men, were to have no blemish.

In other words, physically, they were strong.

Following the Leader

Okay, this morning we're gonna go back to my favorite book of the Bible.

We are going to look again at another very familiar story in Daniel.

You know, we grow up as children, many of us, hearing these stories and listening and, you know, being enthralled.

And God always gives us something new, always something to enliven and refresh our understanding of him.

So we're gonna look at the story of Daniel chapter 3 this morning.

So I hope you are ready to hear directly from the word of God.

Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold whose height was 3 score cubits and the breadth thereof 6 cubits.

He set it up in the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon.

Then Nebuchadnezzar the king sent to gather together, pay attention here, the princes, the governors, and the captains, the judges, the treasurers, the counselors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces to come to the dedication of the image which Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.

The princes, the governors, the captains, the judges, the treasurers, the counselors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces were gathered together unto the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.

And they stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

Then an herald cried aloud, to you it is commanded, O people, nations, and languages, that at what time ye hear the sound of the, oh, another list.

At what time you hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of music, Ye shall fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up, and whoso falleth not down and worshipeth shall the same hour be cast into the midst of a burning, fiery furnace.

Therefore, at that time, when all the people heard the sound of, here it comes again, the cornet, flute, harp, saqbat, psaltery, and all kinds of music, all the people, the nations, and the languages fell down and worshipped the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.

Did you get something out of that, those first 7 verses?

Lists, I mean, lists of people, and then lists of where they came from, who they were, and then lists of instruments, list, list, list, you heard them all twice.

What is happening here is that there is a unified group of people.

There is a unified group of people and all the leaders from all the provinces, from all the territory of Babylon were brought together.

They are described as a group of people, nations, languages, and I hope you're immediately thinking of some passages in the book of Revelation where nations, people, languages are brought together.

And look at what they're brought together for.

And there is a threat of death if they fail to worship.

Is this ringing some bells from another book?

So if you're reading something in 1 of the books, it should ring bells in the other book, right?

And look what's interesting here is that How do they know when they're supposed to worship?

Music gives the cue a harmony of music, a unity of music.

I debated if I should share this next portion or not, but I think it's an important topic to talk about.

We're going to take an interlude and talk about music.

You're not going to hear from me, you're going to hear from the Word of God.

We've got a lot of reading here to do, so stay alert.

To lift the thoughts to that which is, what?

Pure, noble, and elevating, and to awaken in the soul devotion and gratitude to God.

Going on, music forms a part of God's worship in the courts above.

And we should endeavor in our songs of praise to approach as nearly as possible to the harmony of the heavenly choirs.

I think I heard some of that yesterday during our divine service.

Singing as a part of religious service is as much an act of worship as is prayer.

Music is the idol which many professed Sunday keepers.

Music was created by God to lead us to devotion to who?

Satan has no objection to music if he can make that a channel through which to gain access to the minds of the youth.

And remember, we're all younger than God, so that makes us all young.

So when turned to good account, music is a blessing, but it is often, not once in a while, not on occasion, but it is often made 1 of Satan's most attractive agencies to ensnare souls.

So going back to Daniel chapter 3, in this 1 chapter we hear music mentioned over and over and over again in relation to worship.

We read Chapter 3, verse 5 and 6 and 7 also, okay, those musical instruments are mentioned there.

Then if we go to verses 10 and 11, you know the story so I'm just skipping to these verses.

Thou, O King, has made a decree that every man that shall hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sacre, sacbat, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of music, shall fall down and worship the golden image.

And then in verse 15, now if ye be ready that at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of music, ye fall down and worship the image which I have made.

Why would Daniel spend the expensive time of writing this down over and over again?

It wasn't easy to scribble this out back then.

They didn't have their fancy little typewriters, right?

It took a lot of effort to put this down in writing.

And here he is mentioning it over and over again, a list, a list, not just a summary, but a list, a detailed list.

And any time in the Word of God that you see something repeated, it means God wants you to pay attention.

I'm telling you over and over again because this is important.

The things you have described as taking place in Indiana, this was at a camp meeting at 1 of our church congregations or conferences, the Lord has shown me would take place just before the close of probation.

Every uncouth thing will be demonstrated.

Alistair Huong

Gather Up the Fragments

Father in heaven, thank you so much for the morning Which we know comes along with a renewed measure of your mercy and your grace towards us If it were not for you, we would be nothing.

And So now as we spend a thoughtful moment contemplating the words of Christ, speak to us.

May Christ, through the person of the Holy Spirit, move in each 1 of our hearts.

And as we try to grapple with spiritual things and how those spiritual things impact us in a practical, personal, real way.

Help us to find something that we can apply as we go home from this mountaintop experience, we pray.

As you already know, my wife and I have a blog called savingthecrumbs.com.

And some of the leaders in the back say, hey, these are the crumbs, you guys are the crumbs.

So we're saving the crumbs here this morning.

But the interesting story behind the name, there's actually 2 stories behind the name.

The first 1 is more the practical side, and that is when my wife and I first got married, early on in our marriage, we wanted to bake our own bread.

And we were using a bread maker and we had recipes and they weren't all turning out properly and so when we were slicing the bread on the cutting board, frequently at first we would end up with a mound of crumbs.

And what do we normally do with crumbs on the cutting board?

You just sort of swipe them off into the garbage disposal or into trash, and you wash them away, right?

Well, my wife realized, you know, we're going to be experimenting with a lot of recipes.

So we need to think of some resourceful way to deal with these crumbs.

So she would keep them in a little Tupperware container, put them in the freezer, and a lot of loaves of bread were coming out of our kitchen, and before long, she perfected the recipe, But before we got to that point, we ended up with a little healthy container full of crumbs.

And it ended up being worthwhile to use those crumbs to create another dish with.

And so When we were trying to come up with a name for this blog about personal finance and frugal living and saving money and all that, we realized, hey, this is the perfect illustration.

Saving the crumbs, the little bits that we might let go to waste, put together may end up being something worthwhile and valuable.

So that's 1 of the stories that lead, that led to us calling our blog Saving the Crumbs.

But there's a second reason, and the second reason is based on the verse in scripture that we're going to meditate on today.

Okay, so even the dogs eat the crumbs off the master's table, that's really good.

That's not the story though Let's turn our Bibles to the book of John John chapter 6 and see if you can figure out from the verse we're gonna read or the passage we're gonna read what the title of our message is this morning and also why we ended up calling our blog Saving the Crumbs.

Answered him, 200 denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them that everyone may have a little.

1 of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to him, there is a lad here who has 5 barley loaves and 2 small fish, but what are they among so many?

Then Jesus said, make the people sit down.

Now there was much grass in the place So the people sat down in number about 5000 and Jesus took the loaves and when he had given thanks he distributed them to the disciples and the disciples to those sitting down and likewise of the fish as much as they wanted and Verse 12.

This is the key listen carefully wake up So when they were filled he said to his disciples, what should they do?

Gather up the fragments that remain so that nothing is lost.

Amen Verse 13 therefore they gathered up and filled how many baskets?

12 Baskets with the fragments of the 5 barley loaves which are left over by those who had eaten.

Just an interesting side note, because it wouldn't last the trip home.

But John 6, verse 12 was the biblical reason or the biblical story that helped us come up with this name.

And so for the balance of our time together, I just want to focus on 5 lessons that we can learn from this story.

5 lessons from Jesus' words, gather up the fragments, Which happens to be the title of this message this morning gather up the fragments and the first lesson is the most obvious surface level on the nose lesson Jesus is telling us don't waste Don't be wasteful be resourceful be frugal be Economical Ben Franklin once said watch the pennies and the dollars will take care of themselves.

So in the same way, just like we gathered the crumbs from the cutting board, even though it seemed insignificant, just like Jesus gathering up the little bits from the multitude may seem insignificant in and of itself, Put together, it's no longer insignificant.

And you know, today we live in a culture of waste.

And the imagery is so vivid, is that Our lives are constant exploding volcanoes of waste.

If we can just see there's a long trail of not just pollution, but trash and wasted stuff, resources, that we have not put to the best use.

Just for an example, how many pairs of shoes do you have in your closet?

I'm a man and I have more pairs of shoes than I can count.

We just put some shoes to the thrift store before we came on this trip and I still have more pairs of shoes than I can hopefully ever wear out.

Not only that, this idea of waste in our society now, we try to isolate ourselves from it.

So we buy these nice packages right from the store, we rip it open, we throw it in the trash, and then we take the trash out, but when we take the trash out the trash man comes with a big truck with an automatic arm that picks up the trash, and we never see it again.

We don't have to dig a hole, we don't have to have a burn pile, we don't have to compost our scraps from the kitchen, because the waste is shipped off, isolated from us, And so we don't really understand just how much we waste.

And so we come into, or we live in a consumerist society and we often are told, you deserve more, you should have more stuff, you should buy this, You should buy that.

But in essence, we have more than enough.

You know, we love to complain about the price of gas.

And Gasoline is 1 of those things that is a good illustration of this because we feel the dollars at the pump But then we complain about how expensive gas is while we sit there idling the car Burning the gas going nowhere We have a disconnect and Jesus is telling us let's remember something The resources given to us are all talents to be increased Not to be wasted and I want to share this passage with you from the book Desire of Ages, page 368, paragraph 1.

We're gonna refer back to this several times.

So if you have, you know, your electronic devices where you have the Ellen White books on there, you may want to look this up and follow along.

We're gonna come back to this a couple times.

It says, but he who had all the resources of infinite power at his command said, gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost.

These words meant more than putting the bread into baskets.

We are to let slip no temporal advantage.

We should neglect nothing that will tend to the benefit of a human being.

Let everything be gathered up that will relieve the necessity of Earth's hungry ones.

We're gonna move along through this passage because this passage here contains most of the 5 lessons that we're gonna be talking about.

But that first 1, I'm not gonna belabor the point.

And right here, the desire of ages, Ellen White says, nothing is to be wasted.

But this statement, I wanna go back to how it starts how it describes Jesus Okay, how it?

Characterizes the man who gave the command to gather up the fragments.

But he who had the resources of infinite power at his command said, gather up the fragments that nothing be lost.

Do you see the contrast here of what Ellen White is saying?

On 1 hand, the statement that Jesus says is, gather up the fragments that nothing remain.

Back to Menu

Series

Morning Devotional

Gather Up the Fragments

Transcript

Parent Series

Parent Conference

Sponsor

Recorded

Life of the Apostle Paul

No Insignificant Grace - Part 1

37m

Be Opened

35m

Pathfinder Parade

21m

Be Careful What You Ask For

40m

Hope in the Future

Hope in the Future- Part 4

58m

The Inspired Word

The Inspired Word- Part 1

1h 15m

Health Ministry in Church

31m

Seminars

Origins of Self-Supporting Work

1h 9m

Ten Commandments

5. A Pile of Rocks

38m

The Prodigal Son

Not Enough to Be Religious

44m

Self Forgetfulness

36m

Sound Doctrine