(Deeper 2003 - 'Let It Go') Letting Go of... - Sep 26, 2003 Pm — Stephen Fenton

Joel's got that great sort of radio voice really big. Deep deep voice a lot of us. You could you could turn me down just a little bit. It sounds like I'm really loud Mike. A lot of us have been praying for quite a while about this event, and we're very excited.

I Think also many of us this week are aware that The devil has done all he can do to distract and and Discourage some of us. Some of us are a little weary. It's kind of wondering what ship you got to camp in tonight.

I think some of us limped into the grounds this evening metaphorically speaking, and I was wondering you know. As you begin this as I begin to speak where your hearts are and I'm sure that there's a struggle in your heart right now.

Letting Go of the Burden of Doing

If for no other reason than that that the enemy does not want you to hear this message. No, it doesn't matter what he wants because he's already defeated. But I I know who you are you know there are very few retreats for this age group.

You guys are this sort of the 20-something age group most of you so you're a little younger than that. Some of you might be a little older than that. But you know you guys already are considered leaders in many of the contexts where you work and live.

Many of the churches you come from the other guys carrying the burdens. Some of you have come already very busy in the fall of a new year of ministry. Some of you are at university, and I'm just overwhelmed with the challenges there.

I Was it was kind of cool to notice that the line the sign language signs were doing it's like this. Yeah, oh, man. I wonder how many doers are here tonight. You just feel like that today, you know just like you've been running all week all all year all your life.

Because this age group you're the doers. You're the people that your church will look to. You're the people that you're. Your peers will look to you're the people the younger ones look to. You're the people that a lot of burden falls on.

And as we prayed about what we should look at this week and ask the Lord. It just became so clear to us that we needed to speak to you about letting it go. And we're going to talk over the next few sessions about what it is that you need to let go.

But I I would imagine also that some of you already been thinking about the title Of the weekend and God's already been doing some preparation. I talked to two or three other people already and and God was already speaking to them about the title.

I put the same. Even before they got here, so I'm sure that for some of you even though you may not even realize it yet you'll Click in somewhere in the next day or so and realize what God's been saying to me over the last six weeks.

And he'll begin to really Challenge you as I hope he does right from the start. You know it'd be my great desire. This is always the way I feel when I come to retreat. We're going to have an awesome time.

There's some amazing things planned. There's some wonderful Events going to take place over the next 36 hours or so. But would be my desire and my prayer that the Holy Spirit will come down upon us even as he has in our worship.

But he had just really come down upon us this evening. I would just spend the whole weekend in worship. That would be awesome. Now I know you can't make that happen. That's got to be God, but that's what I pray for.

But in the middle of the night you guys will be getting up to worship that that in the morning. You'll be worshiping that through the day my whatever else we had planned it. Just be laid aside, and we just want to spend time glorifying God, and I know May not happen that way and whatever we do it'll be excellent.

But my prayer is that God will come among us because God needs to touch this generation the 20-something 30-something generation. Because some of you have come out of Spiritual lives that are just frantic and You feel it that that sense of Doing is just so strong in your life.

There is such a desire in our generation your generation. I should say I was quite myself among this number. I'm getting far older than that. To serve the Lord. You've been trained that way you've been conditioned that way you've come into your adulthood with the with the words serve.

It's just sort of imprinted upon your brain out of your churches serve. Holiness is equated in in our Christian culture in North America with busyness and If you can just serve the Lord, then you're more holy.

You know it's not true. Surprise surprise. It's not true, but that's what we've equated it with. I just pray that God will speak to you as he's speaking to me and Show you how much he loves you. And give you a taste of real freedom so that he can actually achieve something.

There is such a need in This generation. You know it more than me. You're working some of you with young people. You're already leaders and youth groups. You're involved in universities some of you have friends who are just on the edge of self-destruct.

Some of you come from backgrounds that are just shaken and falling apart. Some of you come from churches that are warring within. It's a terribly needy time just this past week in the parking lot of one of our major high schools here in PEI a young lady overdosed and all of us sense the need and sometimes that drives us even further into doing so that God can be heard and and the message of hope can be proclaimed.

And yet it seems that the only thing that really gets achieved is that we get tired and tired and tired. Some of you are just weary, and I don't mean just tired because it's Holy smoke 11 o 'clock at night.

But you're tired because spiritually you're tired. You're just really weary. You're very uncertain. I mean there's a part of you that loves God. There's a part of you that loves the music. There's a part of you that wants to just run your whole life for him, but inside.

There's a terrible Uncertainty we're going to talk about that this evening. As we do let's really ask God now to meet with us to keep us awake. I say I'm not afraid of that tonight. It'll be tomorrow night that we'll be struggling to keep you awake.

Tonight you should be fairly good, but let's pray Father we're on the water with you Lord speak to our hearts speak freedom and new creation within us. New things even as believers, and I would imagine the vast majority of fear Christians.

Why do we need to hear your voice some of us are so tired so confused so frightened? Our culture frightens us the world scares us. The tide that seems to be rising against us frightens us our. Our future frightens us.

The Rich Young Ruler and the Fear of Not Being Enough

We're so uncertain. Just ask that you'll be with us tonight speak to our hearts Jesus name. I had a visit this week with a good friend of mine and As I sat and listened to her speaking I began to see and hear Myself in her has that ever happened to you you listen to somebody else's story and You listen to somebody else's story and not five minutes in you begin to think wow.

It's just like me and you see yourself. It's an eerie feeling isn't it as I ever happened to you. Yeah, no only the three people over here, okay? Nobody over here. Oh, it's just you. And as my friend be began to share her story I began to hear more and more of myself and the more that we spoke and shared and prayed together.

Another story Impressed itself upon my mind. It's it's in Luke 15, and it's a story of the rich young ruler and You know that story well, and we're going to think about it tonight, and and right away I just want to say this guy gets a bad rap a lot of us.

Think of him as one who failed we think of him he walked away. It's like he just didn't get us, but listen in Mark 10 and verse 23. It says that Jesus looked at this young man and loved him. So I want you to keep that in mind.

Because many of us are in the same spiritual category that we may not be in the same financial category. We're in the same spiritual category of this young man. Because here was a young man who was genuine who had known of God a known God he claims it himself since his childhood and Had become a doer with all of his heart.

Seeking to please God the lady. I was young lady. I was talking to very much the same in fact. She's become one of our leading lights in the church. Just so active so busy so well-organized. So amazingly skilled so terrifying for someone like me who doesn't know how to put anything together.

She's just and as I listened to her I heard not so much in her organizational skill or her her Abilities which are far beyond mine, but in that the driven attitude that she had she's just driven To do driven to serve driven to reach.

She said you know. I'm just Overwhelmed there's so much need around me. I just don't know where to start. It's like it just gets so overwhelming so so Powerful that in the end. I I just get I can't do anything.

Have you ever felt like that? And you know as we talked even further it became clear that she was a lot like this young man and Luke chapter 18. And if you have your Bible you can look it up if you don't I'll read it to you.

It says that a certain ruler came to the Lord Jesus and said good teacher. What must I do? To inherit eternal life. He's a good boy, and he'd heard of a good teacher good man. And you know as Jesus spoke to this young man as he responded to him he cut to the quick right away he got past all of the niceties you get past the the compliment.

And he said immediately to this young fella. What hold on. Think about what you're saying. Nobody's good. No, man, anyway, there's no man who is good only God is good, but anyway, what do you want? Just first of all think about what you said.

I want to challenge you this evening because you know what you just this kid thought he was one of the good guys. And I realized as I listened to my friend. That's how she thought of herself, and I know that's how I thought of myself.

When I got to be 21 22 23 years of age. I was one of the good guys. Never did dope never drank beer. Never went to parties that were wild and well, maybe one or two, but not many. Never got myself in trouble with the law.

Never killed anybody and where I grew up that was happening all the time. Never hated someone to the point where I beat them with a stick which is also happening in my country all the time. I Was one of the good guys remember when I first went into ministry.

I was 23 years of old when I Started in my first church. Actually, it was a little younger when I started one of my student churches, but anyway. I thought age group. You know you just Ready to go, and I remember thinking distinctly and it was a thought that came through my mind all the time.

Yeah, you know it's probably makes sense that I'm in the ministry because you know. Some of the people I meet Mom, they're so messed up, but I had a good background. So the people I meet mom their high schools and their homes are just so messed up.

They don't even know which way is up. It makes sense really I'm in the ministry. I had a good festival parents. I had a good Good teacher my dad loved the Lord. I just I grew up in a good home. I came to Christ when I was young you know I didn't get into anything that really has messed my mind up or Destroyed my body.

It just it makes sense that I'm in the ministry. You know I'm one of the good guys. Now I wasn't in my mind a particularly arrogant position to take it just seemed to make sense to me. You know what there's some of you think the same way.

It's not that you've anything against the people that you meet that are really messed up. But you know that you know you're just not one of those people. You know you're just not there. And you're serving the Lord, and you're so glad so many ways.

That's where you're at and if you were in this Context you might be doing exactly the same. You'd find this good teacher because he had a reputation of just being absolutely flawless. They think well.

He's another good guy. I got a question because really even though. It's true. Even though it's true. I'm so glad to be where I'm going in the direction I'm going in and I'm one of the good guys. I still have some fear and Jesus immediately challenged him with this there are no good people.

I want you to think about that because it's vitally important for you to realize how true it is. You will never understand your need of Jesus until you understand. Who you really are? You good guys. You kids that grew up in the church.

You kids that went to Bible school you kids that have You know done the counselor training, but yeah if I asked you how many were counselors at camp here almost every hand would go up. You're the good guys.

You're the guys that have led like 1500 kids to the Lord. You're yet you are yeah, I can just see it. You're the guys that have have the prayer lists for years. You're that you're you're the guys that have gone to the prayer meetings around the flag in your high school.

You're the gosh there. You are you're the guys. You're the guys who write to your missionaries. Yeah, yeah there you are. I hear you. You're just a good guys. You know what there's nobody any good, and it's a bit devastating to realize, but you must come to this.

See let me ask you this question. And you're going to give me this sort of spiritual answer you're going to give me the Christian answer. But let me ask you hi necessary. I mean really you don't have to answer me really need to think about this yourself, but hi Necessary it's Jesus to you.

Oh, he's everything. He's my all-in-all. Okay, but hi necessary. I heard a great story recently, which I I've shared a couple of times in our church. This young man wants to find God. So he goes where the Beatles went went to India find God.

And he went to a wise man. He said how do I find God? And the guy said let's go for a swim. Okay, so they went for a swim and while they were swimming the holy man grabbed the scruff of the neck of this young searcher and Stuck him under the water and held him there.

This kids getting frantic. Starting to shake kick the guy holds him there. Holds him there holds him there till he nearly drowns. And he pulls him up by the water. Yes, he says now when you were under the water.

What were you thinking about. And you guys it well the only thing I could think about why I was under that part. I I had to breathe. That was the only thing in the world. I just had to breathe mom. What are you doing?

You nearly killed me. I had to breathe. I just I had to breathe. Neil man said when You need God. That much may ask you good guys the sheriff's. People who march around tombstone and clear up the dirt from the streets.

Wyatt Earp and the crew hi. Hey, ask you now. Hi necessary see the way we've been trained we get to think we're necessary to him. Oh God yeah, I'm here standing right alongside. You know okay, Jesus you're white up.

I'm Doc holiday. And I'm your best pal. And you're a good guy, and I'm a good guy, and we're gonna blow the bad guy. So and and spiritually, that's the way we get that's the way I was. I was a good guy.

Didn't do drugs. I didn't get into violence. I wasn't a terrorist. Good guy. Pastors kid missionary kid it's good. It's good that Jesus had me. I was kind of useful. I Mean it wasn't really arrogance.

It's just I was glad that I was there God that was in that place. I've led kids to the Lord. Hey, man. I'm available useful. Here's my itinerary, and here's my you know resume in Use me Lord. You need me how necessary is Jesus to you.

Christianity Is Rooted in Our Need for Jesus

Did you never truly truly understand? What Christianity is about? Until you understand how much you need. This kid came along so all right. You know I've got a lot of things together. It's just one or two little questions I need to clear up.

But as he speaks, there's real. It's cool. There's a real Suggestion a real hint of fear and what he says he says what must I do to inherit eternally I? Just want to make sure of this I You know I know I'm one of the good guys.

There's just times you know when I'm just slipping off into sleep just. There are just times when I I wonder does God really is it okay, and am I really okay? I mean, I know what the Bible says. I've led kids to the Lord.

I know the sinner's prayer. I I've done all that there's sometimes. Still and my friend to me said to me last night. She said you know I Talked to people about this, and they said you're okay. You're one of the good guys.

You're so busy. You're serving the Lord. You're so awesome. Of course. You're okay. What are you worried about? Remember going to a conference when I was 23 24 years old with another pastor. I was just starting in the ministry.

Heard a guy called John MacArthur speak about the passage in Matthew 7 where he's Jesus says not everyone He says to be Lord. Lord will come into my kingdom. And he said there'll be people who come say Lord didn't we preach in your name.

Didn't we do miracles in your name do it Demons in your name and it and I mean I'll look at them. And they'll say depart from me you workers of iniquity because I just didn't know yeah, I never knew you.

We never actually connected. You did a lot of this, but you didn't know a lot of me. I don't know you. Kind of message is over. I was shaking. Because all of my life. I was saved somewhere in the sort of Netherlands of my youth somewhere back way back.

I can hardly remember and I had served the Lord through youth group. I was preaching when I was 13 years of age. I was a Sunday school teacher at 12. I was a youth leader at 15. I was a head of the youth ministry when I was 18.

I was in the Bible school at 19. I was a pastor at 23. Mean I've done the thing and my heart part of my heart just burned to serve, but there was deep fear to. Every week I struggled. Am I really? Thank you.

I mean I know it's not about doing. I know it's not. You start to put your hair. That's what happened up here. I'm really acceptable. Is it okay? So the time I got to the end of that sermon man, I was terrified because I Just wasn't sure there was this deep fear, and it's in this young man.

Okay. I'm one of the good guys. I'm Genuine. I'm trying but Okay, how do I make sure? How do I inherit eternal life? Since it's something missing my friend said last I said I My friends will say to me.

You're okay. They don't know what goes on in my mind. They don't know about the things that I think about it. So true right and this is where I get got freaky because this is the way exactly the way I used to think to.

They don't really know what it's like inside me. This is a Christian speaking. I'm not speaking to people who don't know the Lord if you're here, and you don't know the Lord. I hope that God will draw you through love and grace and through the things we say.

But it's to you good guys you guys that are serving and I don't mean those you don't know the Lord are bad guys. You just don't know the Lord yet, okay? But those of you that do and you think you're the good guys you're out there working.

How many of you struggle with the fear that maybe you're not saved. How many of you feel like you're just? Trying so hard to make God love you, I mean you know in your head. That's not the way it works.

You've done everything you're supposed to do you maybe have done it twice. Three times you did one secretly so nobody else would know but you made sure. You know you got saved at camp, then you went home.

You said it again at home, and then a couple of weeks later with the pastor. Just a really make sure. But still and now you're right there but still. You fear. Man, I know it. I know what you're going through.

I was 11 years in the ministry. 11 years in the Baptist ministry. 11 years in evangelical Baptist ministry. 11 years in fundamental evangelical Baptist ministry, and I struggled almost every week. Wondering if I was really Acceptable.

It's I worked so hard even though part of me was saying Steve. This is it's not about work even though. I would tell the kids not about work even though I'd priest to the people it's not by works. It's by grace still I was Running as hard as I could hoping that I was doing enough to be acceptable making sure.

You know Jesus. Already knew this kid was in trouble. No, you're in trouble too. No, you knew I was in trouble. And you know. The guy had started along a good teacher. What must I do? There's nobody good says Jesus.

Hold the phone think about what you're saying. The question what must I do to you and hurt the eternal life this it just says. Repent and get saved your bum. That's not what he says. You think that's what he would say.

You think you'd say what are you talking about people are good. There's nobody good. What are you doing? What is wrong with you wake up? He doesn't. He just casually says well, you know the commandments.

The Law Exposes Our Dependence on Grace

Jesus is leading him down the path of works my goodness death and mayhem shock and dismay. Why would he say this? This is not the answer. We were trained to give children. How do I get to heaven? Well, you know the commandments he needs to go to an evangelism seminar.

And have it all sorted out. Because you're not supposed to say that you're supposed to tell people the Roman road, you know, no one is good. You know, we just in his death, you know, you've got to confess your sin.

You've got to confess Christ. I mean what is wrong with him? You know the commandments. That's it. He even reminded the guy of if you do not commit adultery do not commit murder. Do not steal. Do not give false testimony on your father and mother.

The kid the kid immediately comes back. Yeah. All these I've kept. I'm one of the good guys. I've done all this stuff. I know the commandments says whatever right on you just like one more thing. And then he nails him says no everything.

Well, this guy was rich. Sell everything. Sell everything you have. Yeah, he didn't say. The law you failed the law. Don't you even know you failed the law. The law was given in order to show us that we couldn't keep the law.

The law Was given as a schoolmaster to lead us to me. He didn't say any of that. He said yeah, whatever, okay, you just like one thing everything. And then put yourself in my hands let it all go. Every possession.

Yeah, let me ask you something. What did this young man's financial state. Create for him. What does the kind of richness that is described in this and the Jesus goes on to talk about what kind of richness?

What did it create for him? What kind of atmosphere did he live in tell me comfort? Yeah, what else there's the word? To the top of the class my darling my Friend. Cool kid, and she's right on. Of course it did.

He could keep the law. You shall not steal. He owned half the country. What did he need to steal? I mean? Oh, yeah, don't steal. No problem. I've been doing that since I was a kid. Never once went without a meal never once knew what it was to wonder whether he could pay his bills of course.

Of course he could honor his father and mother then made him stinking rich. Wouldn't you honor your father and mother? Scores, I love mom and dad. Not a problem. Tell a lie man when you're rich you can always tell the truth.

You tell everybody everything you think about them. It doesn't matter you're rich. Not a problem. Have never had a problem false witnessing because I'm independently rich. I'm independently wealthy. I'm okay, my teeth are white.

I Have a good pension plan. I Have never hungered or thirsted. Of course I've done all these things since I was a child so Jesus is a whatever Doesn't go there. He just nails them so he says so become dependent so Let go of your Independence.

Tell it all some people have looked at this says that mean that we've all got to follow this road of poverty. You missed the point what he was saying to this young man was Let go of your money because your money gives you control.

Letting Go of Control

Let go of control and put yourself in my hands. Follow me and this Is where it hurts? For every single one oh Yes, Lord, I tell the truth. Oh, yes, Lord. I serve what you thought I'm doing. Doing doing doing much as I can all the time serving you every year.

I'll go to camp forever. I'll be the oldest counselor ever. Yeah, I love it Lord. I just I love serving you it's so wonderful. Okay, whatever I? Mean whatever you good guys God bless you see it says just before Jesus said this you know give up control.

He said he looked at the guy, and he loved at Mark 10 23, and I want you know this God looks at you. And he just so loves you. Jesus looks he and he just it's so loves you. I could he loves doers. You know church is full of doers.

That's why you know he loves him. He's always saving doers. You know just you're right there, you're just awesome. He loves you so much, but you know what he says whatever what you're doing. Oh. You're still afraid and some of you still struggle with your salvation experience.

And some of you still wonder if you're really born again some of you know How to tell somebody else to get saved how to make sure they know they're okay. But you're just not sure you're okay and a great deal of your struggle is about making God say or somebody say man.

You're all right, but then when somebody says still you're not sure. That was my story. You know and the Lord Jesus began to show me my heart and show me. I I wasn't a good person. It was a terrible discovery.

From Self-Confidence to Brokenness

I were preaching and I'm almost done one Sunday morning. Just in a period of brokenness. Crying before my people. Confessing some sin and asking their forgiveness. And the next day one of my old ladies called up and said Steve.

Some of our older people had a meeting yesterday, and I'm the spokesperson. And we just want you to know. You're not as bad as you think you are we love you so much. Tears were streaming down my face and then they're in the phone because I wanted to scream.

I didn't know of course because she's one of my old ladies I'd put her in an early grave, but I wanted to scream. I have lived for years with fear. I have struggled so much. I failed so deeply I still don't Really know yes sometimes with this Bear, but I said thanks very much some of you are there here is Kiss and point here is the crux of the matter and here it is for you to and for me let go of control.

Okay, so what you're saying is okay, so what you're saying is that I can't. What you're saying is that I can't set the agendas anymore. That's exactly know what what you're saying is that my plans to serve the Lord my Designs my effort to prepare myself my work to get there.

It's not what he wants. It's not where I did exactly what he's saying you mean he's saying that I've got to really be in a situation where He has to actually make it real or it's not going to happen or I'll starve to death.

Spiritually metaphorically speaking in this case literally in the scripture. Literally Jesus said okay, whatever. Wonderful, you're a good guy, so sell your possessions and this kid it says was deeply saddened.

Because he had much wretches a mind of grit wealth he walked away to get in you doing. And some of you'll leave this weekend, and you'll go back to your schools. And you go back to universities you go back to your youth groups doing doing doing.

Nobody will be able to tell that you're not where you should be or you're just not happy or you're just not sure there's deep Fear within because you came to this point and you've been here before because God has challenged you but it's so many times whatever God says just Okay.

Give up control my friend said to me last night as we visited. You see this is what's hard for me because I'm a controlling person. She's pointing at me now. I'm a controlling person. And she is and she She uses that control to make sure that That the ministries that she's involved in run well.

And she uses that control to make sure that that everything is organized and she uses that Sort of ability to control to make sure her life goes in every direction. And she makes sure that she makes all the Simple choices and all the safe places and she makes sure that that even though it's it's a yeah.

It's all about the Lord at one level. It's all about making sure she's safe. When it comes to control she said she said and this is where I was. I was terrified. And she is too. I feel like it was weird.

So like me I can't believe how much like me you are. She said you know I'm afraid off if I give up control. He'll send me what she said. And I went because yeah, I thought I'd give up control man. I'll disappear into the wilds of Timbuktu and I'll never be heard from again.

What a waste Lord. I'm much more useful than that. I Mean couldn't go to Africa couldn't go to Africa. There are spiders as big as horses there Couldn't go. I couldn't couldn't go to Africa. People's people get sick and die there.

I couldn't go to because My country needs me. I was just a Sam was control. I'll serve you Lord, but I'll control. I'll control my emotions. I Mean I'll raise my hands this far, but don't ask me to do this.

I'll sway, but don't ask me to dance. You get too embarrassing. I'll go Canada send somebody else. I'll do this job, but I'll lead. Don't ask me to serve. I'll give advice. Don't ask me to be broken. That's the kiss no way.

I'm going there. I'm a good guy. Broken people need me. Whatever save whatever. Give up control yourself in my hands, and then you'll never fear again. I wonder what would have happened if this young guy had said This is it because you know effectively what holding on to control is it's the first sin.

The Fall and Humanity's Desire for Control

Go right back to the Garden of Eden you see it there. Eve took control of her moral Destiny she didn't say the Lord Serpent speaking deal with it and God would have. Rapidly finally Squishingly he had a dealt with it.

Instead she took hold of her moral Destiny she was one of the good guys. I can do this biggest mistake Humankind has ever made and then Adam followed her wholesale down the pipe, and we have done it ever since we take control and We will not cover it all over with Christianity, and then we try to get right with God.

And we do do do and the church God help us in this last century has Conditioned us to do it. The more important the church has become the stronger the cry from the pulpits has been yet gotta serve. Somebody and who catches that burden you guys.

Because the guys above you in the next generations are already burnt out the ones younger still having a clue. What's going on so you're the guys on whom it falls you're holding on. It's like a juggling match.

Your control. God's work your control, and you know people look at you think wow. She's so amazing. He's so amazing so involved. He's so good. You want a good guys. But every night you're afraid. Still not certain.

You want to be certain you tired of being afraid. Do you wish you could have Jesus in front of you just for 13 or 14 seconds? They say Lord am I okay is it let go of? Control he walked away the Lord Jesus looked at him with love in his heart said you know it's so hard for the rich To enter the kingdom of God.

So hard for those who've got independence. And so hard for the independently wealthy. It's so hard for those who've got so much control. To enter the kingdom of heaven in fact this is easy for a camel to go through the eye of a needle.

It's crazy. It's so sad. The disciples were stunned because the Jews believed that anybody was rich was bound to get to heaven. They figured it if you were rich. It was because God was blessing you and they said well.

There's no hope for us then we. If the rich aren't getting to heaven There's no hope for us. How can it happen. Jesus look right back out. Don't he say you know and seen any and this is what gives me hope for this kid as he looked at him walk away.

He said you know What is impossible with man? It's possible with God, and I imagine that someday We'll find that young man and the rest of his story will be fascinated here as love Pursued and caught him and it'll be fascinating to hear your story.