Have you ever found that your first impression of the day determined the character of the rest of the day? You slept poorly, or you had a terrible dream, or you over-slept and the day began with a start. For some reason, the next eighteen hours are completely destroyed before they ever get to begin. You got out of the wrong side of the bed, and you were on that wrong side for the rest of the day. To help alleviate the problem, the Bible recommends the kind of attitude that we should have. If we are able to establish that attitude before we ever get out of bed, we will be headed in the right direction until we hit the pillow again in the evening.
“This is the day that the Lord hath made, we will rejoice and be glad in it.” Did I mention this morning that even Bible believers take scriptures out of their context? Psalm 118:24 is a wonderful verse, and it is certainly true that every day is a gift of God, but the context of that verse is a bit more specific than April 26, 2009. “I will praise thee: for thou hast heard me, and art become my salvation. The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner. This is the LORD’S doing; it is marvellous in our eyes. This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” That wonderful verse is actually referring to the outworking of God’s decree of salvation. And yet, if we quoted and applied that verse to every day in which we live, it would make us happier and more useful servants of God.
For example, Nehemiah had spent a hard day supervising the reconstruction of the walls of Jerusalem. It had been a dusty, sweaty, nervous day, with construction problems, and the threat of enemy attack. But he said, “Brethren this is an holy day, a day for joy in the things of God.” And this day, our day, in late April, is also an holy day, a day for joy in the Lord. But did you wake up this morning with wonderful thoughts of your Saviour? “Good morning, Father, the rain, the snow, the wind, sound great; it looks like another pretty good day.” There is an old saying which is appropriate here: “What is well begun is half done.”
What I’d like to do this evening is to modify Paul’s thoughts just a little bit in order to reach a Biblical conclusion. Let’s say that these words apply to tomorrow – April 27, 2009. How should we begin that day; what steps should we take in starting the day off correctly? And then let’s put it into the context of a much larger day, the day we call “the rest of our earthly lives.” Here is the saint of God, brought out of darkness into the Lord’s marvelous light. He is a new creature in Christ Jesus, with the rest of his life – a new day – before him. It offers new opportunities, new hopes, and ultimately the expectations of eternity. The sun is dawning in the east, and it looks like a beautiful day. How should we approach that day?
Of course, when Paul says “sleep” he’s not talking about physical slumber, eyes closed, snoring and drool. It’s not the same as Proverbs 6:9 – “How long wilt thou sleep O sluggard, when will ye arise out of sleep.” Nor is it to what Jesus referred in John 11 – “Lazarus sleepeth.” Paul is talking about awaking those who are asleep to their responsibilities and the opportunities of the day. He is speaking of the sleep of indifference, unconcern and inattention.
Christians need to be awake to the fact of Jesus’ soon return: “the night is far spent the day is at hand.” Friends, the world has been without the physical presence of Christ for nearly 2,000 years. How long shall the Lord wait before his triumphal entry? “But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.” For the saint, the gloom of this life will soon burst into the glory of God. But, of course, for the world, the glitter of life will be blackened by the Tribulation. There are seven years coming up that will make the plagues of Egypt look like Disneyland. In the absence of thousands of saints, the ministry of Holy Spirit, as we know it, will come to an end. Men will sin with absolute freedom and the effects of that will be utter devastation. The Lord will pour His wrath down upon this planet. Now is the time for saints to awake; get out of bed and shout,“the King is Coming.”
And we need to awaken to the physical and spiritual needs of people around us. Even the Lord Jesus said that He had to work while it was still His day. And He told his disciples to look upon the fields which were already white unto harvest. How long should the farmer wait after his grain is ripe, before he begins the harvest? We have opportunities today that we may never see again even if we live to be a thousand. Awake out of your indifference and inactivity, says the Apostle. We’d better be coming up with some good excuses for the way that we’ve been wasting our time. And what about God’s money in our pockets? What about the people that he has put within our sphere of influence? Are we hoarding what we know about the Word of God?
Like a lot of churches, I read of one that organized a basketball team to play in a church league. During one hotly contested game a key player for the team crashed to the floor, smashing his head. Immediately he went into a coma and stayed comatose for 12 years. Of course, the church wouldn’t consider excommunicating him for his lack of attendance. That young man didn’t tithe, pray for the pastor, support missions, or invite a single friend to church. But he was still a church member in good standing. He’s just like thousands of others, still on church membership roles, but doing nothing to serve the Lord.
Awake out of sleep, for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.
Some people have trouble deciding what to wear. I’ve told you before – for me, there is hardly anything to think about. After I wash a shirt, I put it at one end of the shirt row in my closet. Every night I take the first shirt at the other end and pull it out, finding a pair of pants to match and put them both out for me to wear in the morning. I do the same thing with my three suits, rotating them each Sunday, and finding the next long sleeve shirt that matches well enough to that suit. In this way my attire keeps rotating in a fairly organized manner. But more importantly, I don’t have to think about what it is that I’m suppose to wear. As far as adding new things to the system, my ladies do almost all of that for me. I don’t spend a lot of time making decisions about clothes.
And in like manner I try to let the Lord decide a few other things about my attire as well. For example, my earthly father, was proud of his English/Scottish heritage. He liked to associate with people from the Old Country – the British Isles. And he eventually joined a pipe and drum corp, while living in Denver. That was despite the fact that he didn’t play either instrument. Actually, the man just enjoyed those people and in wearing a kilt and sporran. What if I decided to follow my father’s fashion and wore a kilt to church tonight? Would anyone be offended? And what would the Lord have you to wear? I think that we can dogmatically declare that Lord wants us wear clothing appropriate to our gender. We might argue about what is truly masculine and what is truly feminine, but clearly, men are expected to wear men’s attire and ladies should be as feminine as possible. We are commanded to dress modestly. I believe that we should dress appropriately – worthy of the Lord – when we come to the House of God. And just as clearly, it is a shame for a man to have long hair like a woman’s. The only exception is if that hair is on his face, which might even be longer than his wife’s hair.
So come on Christian, and put on the garments of the Lord Jesus. There are the garments of the Christian warfare as described in Ephesians 6. “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” Did you know that Paul talks about these garments in three different places? That fact ought to raise an eyebrow or two. The prominence of the subject ought to emphasize its importance. We are far better off wearing physical rags just so long as our soul is wearing the panoply of God. (The word “panoply” refers to the complete arms and armor of the warrior.) But even more important than these – there is the Lord Jesus himself. “But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.” This means, put on the Lord Jesus as you would a new suit or a cloak of perfection. It means crucify yourself – assimilate and walk in the ways of Christ. It is talking about letting the Lord Jesus be the pattern and the guide of your character. “Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.” There’s another old saying: “Clothes make the man,” but it is true only here. There is no coat or button or sign or bumper sticker that can make us a Christian. And yet, what the genuine Christians wears can make or break his service for the Lord.
Now, at this point I’m not going to remind you of the intricacies of a life for God. But I will remind you of some of the qualities of that life. Philippians 2:5 – “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.” Colossians 2:6-7 – “As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.” “As Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of Father, even so we should walk in newness of life.” “Walk in love, as Christ also loved us and hath given us a command that we should follow him.” And the Lord Jesus added, “I’ve given you an example that ye should do as I have done unto you.”
We need to make a life study of following Christ. We need to get out of bed in the morning as Christ Jesus would have. We need to dress like a follower of Christ and to walk as a Christian.
Isn’t it high to time to awake out of sleep?