Wanderlust is a teaching series of Society Church that is all about staying rooted in community and growing in our faith amidst a wanderlust world.
Introduction:
Matthew 13:1-6, 20-21
“Later that same day Jesus left the house and sat beside the lake. A large crowd soon gathered around him, so he got into a boat. Then he sat there and taught as the people stood on the shore. He told many stories in the form of parables, such as this one: “Listen! A farmer went out to plant some seeds. As he scattered them across his field, some seeds fell on a footpath, and the birds came and ate them. Other seeds fell on shallow soil with underlying rock. The seeds sprouted quickly because the soil was shallow. But the plants soon wilted under the hot sun, and since they didn’t have deep roots, they died… The seed on the rocky soil represents those who hear the message and immediately receive it with joy. But since they don’t have deep roots, they don’t last long. They fall away as soon as they have problems or are persecuted for believing God’s word.”
The Midday Heat of Pain and Suffering
Israel walked through a time of Midday Heat Pain & Suffering:
Exodus 14:11-14- 11They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? 12Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!” 13Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. 14The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.”
The Hearts True Steeple:
When this worlds sun rises upon our life
Filled with rays of worldly strife.
Resist the tendency to uproot and run!
For this same midday heat, again, will come.
Instead dig down deep roots in a place and with a people,
For this is community, the souls true steeple.
A refuge from the heat and the withering rays,
A sanctuary of life giving grace to the one who stays.
Identifying and Throwing out the Rocks in our Hearts
Zig Ziglar’s words ring so true: “The first step to getting what you want is to have the courage to get rid of what you don’t.”
- Rock #1- Shallow Faith (Other seeds fell on shallow soil)- Lack of Deep Roots. Developing deep roots takes a long extended period of time with intentionality to dig down deep.
- Rock #2- Underlying Issues (with underlying rock)- The junk people like to hide. Sometimes we will come to church with all kinds of stuff going on in our heart and soul. But instead of allowing God to bring those underlying issues to the surface we hide them under a velour of what looks like deep soil.
- Rock #3- Uncommitted Excitement (The seeds sprouted quickly because the soil was shallow… The seed on the rocky soil represents those who hear the message and immediately receive it with joy/excitement.)- I call this the fruit of feelings. It doesn’t last and it disappoints those that depend on it.
Conclusion:
Jeremiah 17: 5- 8: 5This is what the LORD says: “Cursed are those who put their trust in mere humans, who rely on human strength and turn their hearts away from the LORD. 6They are like stunted shrubs in the desert, with no hope for the future. They will live in the barren wilderness, in an uninhabited salty land. 7“But blessed are those who trust in the LORD and have made the LORD their hope and confidence. 8They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit.