Spoiled In The Garden Of Eden
Preaching
Shaking Wolves Out Of Cherry Trees
And 149 Other Sermon Ideas
Purpose Statement: Too much ease and pleasure threatens to distort our perspective and warp our values.
We hear talk of parents indulging their children by catering to their every whim and thereby spoiling them. This can easily happen in a nation such as ours, which has an abundance of wealth. Even adults can be spoiled by having too much too easily.
a. We should enjoy life. God gave us this wonderful universe full of potential for joy, love, and the appreciation of beauty. At the extreme, we have visions of the Garden of Eden or a paradise, and this becomes a goal for us as we set about fulfilling our dreams. It becomes a partial reality for many, especially in our country where opportunities are great.
b. Too much can be dangerous. If our needs are met too easily and we have an abundance, we can grow indolent and selfish. We begin to vegetate or strive to get even more of the good things.
c. We can become insensitive to the poor. We soon find it hard to identify with the unfortunate majority in our world who suffer privation. Our cocoon existence colors and clouds our vision. We either forget or try to forget the great need that exists.
d. We can forget our need for God. Soon we feel we accumulated all this by our own skill and deserving. We forget the part that others have played in our good fortune. This includes forgetting God. When we have the resources to buy whatever it takes to meet any need, we feel less need for God. It is beguiling, for our need for God is growing and we are unaware of it.
e. Our possessions can take possession of us. The more we have, the more we worry about protecting what we have, and the more difficult it is to part with some of it to help others.
f. Some rough times might be good for us. After being spoiled in Eden, we were put out in the real world to work and struggle. Deuteronomy 8:1-10 describes the forty-year desert experience that tested the people of God. It was a reality check before entering the land of "milk and honey." We need some discipline and hard knocks every once in a while. Jesus spoke about fasting -- that's a start. It wouldn't hurt for God to take us for a walk in the desert every so often.
We hear talk of parents indulging their children by catering to their every whim and thereby spoiling them. This can easily happen in a nation such as ours, which has an abundance of wealth. Even adults can be spoiled by having too much too easily.
a. We should enjoy life. God gave us this wonderful universe full of potential for joy, love, and the appreciation of beauty. At the extreme, we have visions of the Garden of Eden or a paradise, and this becomes a goal for us as we set about fulfilling our dreams. It becomes a partial reality for many, especially in our country where opportunities are great.
b. Too much can be dangerous. If our needs are met too easily and we have an abundance, we can grow indolent and selfish. We begin to vegetate or strive to get even more of the good things.
c. We can become insensitive to the poor. We soon find it hard to identify with the unfortunate majority in our world who suffer privation. Our cocoon existence colors and clouds our vision. We either forget or try to forget the great need that exists.
d. We can forget our need for God. Soon we feel we accumulated all this by our own skill and deserving. We forget the part that others have played in our good fortune. This includes forgetting God. When we have the resources to buy whatever it takes to meet any need, we feel less need for God. It is beguiling, for our need for God is growing and we are unaware of it.
e. Our possessions can take possession of us. The more we have, the more we worry about protecting what we have, and the more difficult it is to part with some of it to help others.
f. Some rough times might be good for us. After being spoiled in Eden, we were put out in the real world to work and struggle. Deuteronomy 8:1-10 describes the forty-year desert experience that tested the people of God. It was a reality check before entering the land of "milk and honey." We need some discipline and hard knocks every once in a while. Jesus spoke about fasting -- that's a start. It wouldn't hurt for God to take us for a walk in the desert every so often.
