In his song, Only the Good Die Young, Billy Joel sang: I’d rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints. The sinners are much more fun. If you feel the way Billy Joel feels you just may have a coronary if you listen to this sermon. So, consider this warning: What you are about to hear might be too radical to take seriously. At the same time, what you hear is the key to fulfillment, happiness and success.
Self-control is a quality found in the character of God. At least nine times the Bible tells us that God is slow to anger, i.e., God controls His emotions; God restrains His agitations; God never acts rashly. The person who breaks out of the egg and soars on the winds of the Spirit has learned to manage well his/her mind, emotions and passions. Here’s the question of the day: How can a person reel in the emotions and passions? How can a person manage explosive agitations? How can a person live below 212* Fahrenheit?
Not only are worry and anxiety symptoms of assuming somebody else’s responsibilities, they are also evidence of a deep problem. What problem? Not knowing God. You may think that the propensity to worry is connected to DNA inherited from previous generations. However, worry is actually the result of not knowing God well enough. Anxieties and insecurities about life come under control when we possess an adequate understanding of who God is and how God cares for us. Don’t miss this opportunity to wipe worry from your life. Learn how now.
Show me someone who is effective as a Christian, and I’ll show you someone who knows his or her Bible. Possessing an intimate knowledge of the Bible is paramount for the person who, as Peter says it: wants to have his entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ abundantly supplied. However, why is biblical knowledge so important? Why does biblical knowledge precede self-control? How does a person draw knowledge out of the Bible and into his head and heart? The answers to these questions hold the key not only to personal healing but to the healing of our society and the world.