How to Get Going Again

FAITH ADVENTURE  "How to Get Going Again" audio podcast by award-winning western author Stephen Bly. Sponsored by BlyBooks.com Legacy Series.
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Transcript

GET GOING
Stephen Bly
Circa 1980s 

Joshua 1:1-9 NASB

“Moses My servant is dead; now therefore, arise, cross this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them, to the sons of Israel. Every place on which the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you, just as I spoke to Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanonm, eve as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and as far as the Great Sea toward the setting of the sun, will be your territory. No man will be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you. 

Be strong and courageous, for you shall give this people possession of the land which I swore to their fathers to give them. Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go. 

This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” 

Mark 16:19,20 NASB

“So then, when the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God. And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them, and confirmed the word by the signs that followed.” 

PRAYER: “Dear Father in heaven, I pray You will guide us into Your Word. May familiar accounts in Mark 16 be new and exciting as we see how You want us to apply them this day, this week into our lives. In Jesus Name, Amen.” 

When does a diet actually start? A diet starts when you pass up the piece of pie and don’t eat it. When does a ballgame start? A ballgame starts when the first pitch is thrown. When does a quilt start? Not until those two scraps of cloth begin to be sewn together. When does a parade begin? Not until that first vehicle or entry actually moves down the street. And when does your spiritual life really get going? Not till you begin.  

Mark 16 tells us how to get going.  

One way is to get out of the tomb. 

Mark 16:7, “But go, tell His disciples and Peter, ‘He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him, just as He said to you.’” The angel at the tomb said, “Go!” 

Now, tombs are not always terrible places. From other accounts in Scripture of Jesus’ burial place indicates this was a new tomb. It was a limestone cave on the side of a hill. It was not a gruesome place yet. No bones or bodies there, except for Jesus. And when they came to look, that body was gone!  

There may have been the aroma of spices and a linen cloth left in the tomb. In a world where you could be persecuted for your faith, that might be nice to have a nice, religious feeling experience in a tomb like they had.  

There’s a sense of wonder in a tomb. They were awestruck. He has risen from the dead. There’s security in a tomb. No threats. Nobody imposing or watching what you’re doing. If you fell to your knees or on your face or closed your eyes or raised your hands, no one would know.  

But there’s limits to a tomb. It was a stagnant place. Nothing new could come or happen. It’s a secretive place where not many know what’s happening. Yet, there’s a sense of excitement in the tomb of Christ. Something had happened here that would affect everything else.   

“Get out of the tomb,” the angel said. 

Some exciting things you can do when you’re out of the tomb. I think we’d all liked to have been there, to see the proof Jesus wasn’t there anymore. There was awe, the majesty, and the excitement of an empty tomb. But how do we live the rest of our lives when we aren’t in the tomb? 

1.) Center your life around the excitement of the empty tomb.
We need to see that inside that tomb resided information the whole world should hear about, should know.

2.) Focus on the good in God’s creation.
The joyful Christian life comes when we see the good that God has done. We live in a world not totally good, that is decaying, and full of sin. But God’s image still shines through. Even in the worst of all sinners, God’s image is not totally hidden. And if we’re going to live outside the tomb with a life of joy, we need to see and focus on the goodness of God’s creation.  

When we hike through the woods, we need to see the butterflies, not the beer cans. And the same’s true when we hike through people’s lives. We need to focus on the good of what God has done. We need to savor the flavor of the food. We need shout with excitement at the games. We need to express joy at the good things of God’s creation.

3.) Expand our creativity and talents.
Try new things. To develop what we have, get into situations on purpose that demand we grow and expand. 

4.) Surprise others with our helpful actions.
Life outside the tomb is being a servant, helping people. That’s when joy comes. 

5.) Live in the eternal dimension.
See our lives as everlasting, ongoing, never ending. That means priorities change and timing’s different. We aren’t in a hurry because we’re going to live forever. And so we go outside the tomb.

Report what you have seen.

Mark 16:10, “She went and reported to those who had been with Him, while they were mourning and weeping.”

What have you seen Christ do? Look at the changes in your own life. Look at the differences He has made in your conversations or your relationships or the way you think, your actions, your plans for the future.

Report the changes you’ve seen in other people’s lives.

There are people around you who have had dramatic changes in their lives. Tell what you hear that God has been doing, the surprises. 

Part of our spiritual message to others centers around the times God has surprised us. Things happen that we didn’t expect. We had no idea that God would do that for us. Go and report the unexpected results. When we were in a fix and we thought nothing good would come from this situation. Then, all of a sudden it turns to something positive, that builds us up. Report what you’ve seen.  

Go and report about God’s preventing us from sin. Sometimes God’s important work is in keeping us from what we could have been. What would it have been like if God hadn’t entered our life? I call it sin prevention.  

Qualities needed to be a convincing reporter. 

First, report the truth without any exaggeration. Understand how powerful truth is and how weak deception is. No matter how much we beef up the truth, we only weaken the power. 
Second, report things with sincerity. No ulterior motive. 
Third, report the important things God has done, not the trivial. 
Fourth, report with reasonableness. That is, it makes sense. 
Fifth, report with consistency. No fluctuation of methods or moods. 
Sixth, report with enthusiasm. Show we have enjoyed what He has done. 
Seventh, report with challenge so people might be changed.  

But some may reject your message. 

One reason is because it’s a spiritual message. And nonspiritual ears, eyes, and hearts can’t receive it. Or it’s hard to believe. Most people who hear it may be ego centered. It threatens an ultimate trust in themselves.  

Sometimes what you report demands a big commitment that makes it hard to receive. But we’re to go out of the tomb and report what we’ve seen and heard.  

Mark 16:12, “And after that, He appeared in a different form to two of them, while they were walking along on their way to the country.” 

The two walking on the road to Emmaus didn’t recognize His voice at first.  

Learn to recognize the voice of Jesus.  

We can recognize it by the subject matter He talks about it. 

Philippians 4:8, “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, let your mind dwell on these things.”  

Those are the kinds of things He will talk about. And you can recognize His voice by the tone. Jesus said, “I no longer call you slaves, but I call you friend.” And Jesus speaks to us as a friend.   

We can recognize His voice by the action that’s commanded. Jesus said, “A new commandment I give you to love one another.” He’ll tell us to love. And Jesus said we’re to be holy; in fact, we’re to be perfect as the heavenly Father is perfect. So, when Jesus speaks to us it’s a voice of holiness.   

Jesus speaks to us to sacrifice. He said, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” When you hear Jesus’ voice, more than likely it will have to do with sacrifice. 

We can tell His voice by the subject matter, by the tone, by the action commanded, and by the result of the action. 

James 3:17 reminds us, “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy.” 

What are the eternal consequences of our action? We’re to go into the world and preach the gospel to all creation, making disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19). The voice of Jesus will lead us there. And we can recognize His voice by the promises attached.  

Matthew 28:20, “Teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” 

Here He promises His presence, and He also promises His abundance (Matthew 10:10), and His security (Matthew 10:28). He also promises provision and peace, health, joy, and power. On it goes. 

Get Going into the World 

Mark 16:15, “And He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.’” 

We’re not to be of the world but we’re in the world. What’s the world like? 

Satan’s power is evident. Jesus is thought lightly of. Self-centeredness rules every relationship. The world appeals to the senses and plays on your pride. But we’re to go into the world and preach the Gospel.  

How do we get people who are reluctant, that is, how does God get us who are reluctant into the world? Scripture shows us methods He uses. We can either go when He says, “Go!” or we can let Him use another method. 

He can use persecution. In Acts the disciples were told to go into all the world and they stayed in Jerusalem. So, they persecuted the church and they had to leave Jerusalem. God also brings the world to our door. He brings them here.  

Peter on the rooftop saw a vision about bringing the Gospel to the Gentiles and then there they were at his door, saying, “We want to hear your message.” He brought the world to them. 

God gets us into the world sometimes by making our competitors successful. Some people saw Paul preaching the Gospel and decided that’s what they wanted to do. They liked the results Paul was getting. Paul said, “I don’t care why they preach. I’m just glad they preach.” 

Sometimes God binds us up and carries off to where He wants us to be. Paul was chained in irons on the ship to Rome and ended up right where God wanted him. Sometimes we get in the straitjackets of ill health and end up in the hospital where we should have been visiting all along. God gets us into the world. 

Sometimes He gets us into the world through explosive power, like on the day of Pentecost. The power of the Holy Spirit was so great they were thrust into people’s lives. Or sometimes we get into the world by having our message rejected by those around us and we must go somewhere else. Like Paul finding the doors closed and being led to a new field. 

We have to get into the world. And if we don’t, God will get us there. And when we get there, we need to accept the confirmation God brings to our ministry by His success.  

Mark 16:20, “And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them, and confirmed the word by the signs that followed.” 

We often heap praise on a little child that’s not in proportion to what they’ve done. We praise them as though they swam the English Channel when they have dry pants when you get home from church. We want to reinforce the good action. God does the same for us. Sometimes He allows affirmation to come disproportionate to what we’ve done. We know it when we really haven’t done that much. But He wants to reinforce that we’re on the right track.  

Sometimes He pats us on the back when He allows us to see results. Like in the Book of Acts when they see the numbers of believers being added day after day. When we see results, God’s saying, “Good job!” I think He confirms it when we have fun in the ministry too.  

When the seventy returned after Jesus sent them out two by two, they were rejoicing. They told Jesus about their great time. God confirms that ministry as well when others see what He’s doing. When we hear from their lips about the ministry we’ve done. This happens most supremely when we see others imitate our actions. We realize we’re having an effect. 

We need to accept the confirmation God brings. How can we do that without having pride ruin us? 

~~ Separate in your mind flattery from praise. 

Flattery is someone telling us how wonderful we are then we look at what we’ve done and we had no control over the matter at all. Such as when someone says you have the most beautiful eyes in the world. But you had nothing to do with it.

~~ Never refuse a gift of praise.

We can be so overwhelmed we don’t know what to do with it. “Oh, it’s nothing,” we say. But they said it was something. So, it is. Accept a true word of praise.  If they enjoyed the song you 

sang in ministry or the teaching or the self-sacrificing help or the pie you baked for them, receive the thanks and compliments. 

~~ Never base your holiness or success or future merely on the praise of others.

You’re not going to continue to be holy or judge yourself to be successful if you get enough praise. All those things are judged by something other than praise. 

~~ Thank God for allowing you to receive each individual word of praise. 

Tell Him “thanks” every single time someone offers your praise. 

~~ Never let the sun come up on your praise.

The praises you received yesterday is old business. Don’t dwell on it today. Enjoy it yesterday with thanks. Thank the one who offer it and thank God. Then put it to rest. Consider the words confirmation and move on. 

Summary of This Series of Sermons

God doesn’t mean for His children to live limpid and listless lives. Instead, catch the excitement of life with Jesus. Follow Him into adventures and excellence that include removing roadblocks, such as failure to confess, failure to release the Spirit, failure to believe the Gospel, failure to sacrifice, failure to bring the needy to Christ, failure to remain faithful in prayer, failure to expose your personal ugliness to the Lord.

We need to expose our faith. Show action for hurting people and open, quick obedience to Christ’s commands. How do you treat sinners? And what’s your faith lifestyle? Let Jesus lead by softening your heart and giving Him room, by responding to His summons and promoting His actions and living up to His family standards. 

Respond to the Word by nurture and exposing it to others. Give the Word time to do its work. Expect great things from it. Allow it to affect every area of your life. 

Also, turn on the power by an honest view of yourself. With a fervent heart, have no regard for the cost or what others think. Seek believing, no matter what we see. 

Increase the results in our lives by dealing with the faith and God factor, the circumstance, enthusiasm, and fear factor.

We need to destroy some enemies, such as traditions, heart issues, timidity and human methods. We need to sharpen our vision while not underestimating our supply or watering down our faith while waiting for a miracle. We can’t settle for second best. Don’t confuse Jesus’ identity. Or look for easy answers. 

And sometimes we need to do something drastic, like getting help for unbelief and pushing ourselves into prayer. Ask some dumb questions. Serve the fellowship. Sometimes even mutilate sin. And imitate the Savior, seeking the Spirit’s help to know who He really is. We seek His pleasure by transferring our treasures, going to the back of the line, braving against the odds, getting in over your head, hearing His plea above the roar.

Sometimes we assert our authority. Or insist on exuberant praise, mountain moving faith, and dramatic timing. 

To get your spiritual life going, give something up. Give God your first fruits. Give the government your allegiance. Seek to understand the Bible. Give the commandments your attention and Christ your honor. 

Plan for the future. Ignore the noise by relaxing about words. Review the account. Enjoy the scene. Recognize the signs. Stick close to Jesus through the embarrassment, the preparation, the betrayal, the communion and denial, the distress and danger, the accusation and guilt.
Conclusion
Then, spend a day at the cross. See what you can find out about Jesus from an astonished Pilate, a fortunate Barrabas, or a cross bearing Simon. Be there with a foolish chief priest or skeptic centurion or courageous Joseph.

Now, it’s time to get going. Get out of the tomb. Report what you see. Recognize His voice. Get into the world and accept the confirmation that will bring. 

There it is. Plenty of places to begin. No excuses. 

Prayer: “Dear Father, I do thank you for your Word in Scripture, for the whole book of Mark. And I thank you we don’t have to get going every place at once, but only one place at a time. Through all these long weeks of study, I pray you have singled out in our hearts and lives the place you want us to start to be different. Help us live the kind of life we’ve always wanted to live and that will bring most glory and honor to you. Thank you for your love for us that directs us to exactly what we need to know and when we need to know it. Amen & Amen.”