Get Out of Your Way – Stop Blocking Blessings!

Reverend Leo H. McCrary II

God has promised blessings and a greater blessing that we must stop blocking ourselves from inheriting. What is it that we must do so that we don’t block ourselves from God’s blessings?

Introduction

In my last two sermons, we saw Nicodemus, a ruler (spiritual leader) of the Jews, humbly come to Jesus to learn from him.  You may recall in my sermon – A Necessary Transformation – I touched on the need for humility.  As I stated in that sermon, at our wisest, we still need help on this journey.  The opposite of humility, being arrogant and proud, is a setup for a total collapse.

Avoiding collapse on our journey is what I want to focus on this week.  Many of us don’t realize how often we block ourselves and others from God’s blessings.  So, I want to share a powerful message from John the Baptist today, from John 3:25-30.

The Bane of Mankind’s Existence

I want to open up today’s message by stating that we must not be blinded by worldliness.  For far too long, mankind has been plagued because of its worldly outlook on life and living.

In John 3:25-26, the disciples of John the Baptist were blinded by jealousy.  In this scripture, we see that they came to John the Baptist upset that people were no longer coming to him to be baptized, but were going to the one whom he had baptized.  In their minds, they thought that Christ was stealing John’s glory!

Now, I want you to consider this for a moment:  How would it have been a bad thing that people were going to Christ to repent and be baptized instead of John the Baptist?

Consider this also:  What did they want John the Baptist to do about the people going to Christ to be baptized?  Did they want him to shut it all down?

Their train of thought was certainly not of heaven, but rather, it was of a worldly mindset.  John’s disciples had become blinded by power and authority, and the implication is that they desired for John to assert authority over Jesus baptizing the people.  How crazy does that sound to you?

Perceived authority has been the bane of mankind’s existence.  From the beginning, man has, and still does, try to play god over his own life and the lives of others.  Perceived authority has oppressed and enslaved.  Perceived authority has been the cause of so much death and so much war.  Perceived authority has created harmful systems like systemic racism, injustice, and inequality in workplaces, schools, and so forth.

Good Work Hindered by Presumptuous Faith

Perceived authority has also been a bane to the movement of faith, and a living hell to many.

Again, I want you to consider for a moment:  What would have come from John the Baptist shutting down people going to Jesus to repent and be baptized?  Would anyone have been saved?

In Luke 9:49-50, the apostles of Christ told Jesus that they stopped someone they had witnessed casting out demons in Jesus’ name.  Do you think any good would come from stopping someone from casting out demons in the name of Christ?

Today, there are Christian ‘rulers’ who believe they have the authority to dictate how the word of God ought to be taught and preached.  Some try to dictate who can be saved and will go to heaven.  Others try to dictate how people should live!  And the question remains:  What good is coming from those Christians who are being so presumptuous in their faith?

The results of such presumptuous faith is seen all around us today, as they cannot be hidden.  

Today, there is disputing over truth.  There is disputing over which Bible is the true bible.  Local churches are fading away for mega corporations.  People are being pushed away from God and faith in Him.  Ultimately, presumptuous faith is hindering the good work of salvation, and therefore, it is shutting up the kingdom of heaven to mankind.

Perceived authority, presumptuous “faith”, is another deception of Satan that he uses to cause much division and harm, both in and out of the faith.  One must not let perceived power and authority get to one’s head!

Humility Is Better Than Arrogant Wisdom

Believers ought to have a Nicodemus mindset, which is to say, we ought to be humble.  Nicodemus was a “ruler”, a spiritual leader, but he had the humility not to be so presumptuous, but came to Jesus.  Being presumptuous is what caused many scribes and Pharisees to go blind to the Messiah physically being before them.

To all people, humility is better than being wise in your own eyes.  Again, I am reminded of Solomon, who, in all of his wisdom, labor, and wealth, said he hated the life he lived, as it was distressing and vanity to him in the end (Eccl. 2:17).  That is why Solomon dedicated the books of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes to sharing the message of being humble.  Solomon understood that there are no long-lasting blessings in man’s wisdom.

You see, God causes the ‘wisdom of the wise’ to perish, and brings to nothing the understanding of their prudent (Is. 29:14).  I am of the belief that mankind hasn’t progressed nor flourished as much as it could because we continue to heed our own wisdom.

Proverbs 26:12 states that there is more hope for a fool than for one who is wise in their own eyes.  This statement is incredibly powerful, especially when you consider that a fool despises wisdom and instruction; it’s a struggle for a fool to ever learn!  

Yet, this proverb tells us that there is something worse than being a fool!  One who is wise in their own eyes believes they’re “perfect,” and there is no need to ever change or grow.  Let me remind you that the path of one who is wise in their own eyes is a path whose end is the way of death, a total collapse (Prov. 14:12).

Presumptuous Faith Forbidden

Here is the point in today’s message where I am going to show you that being presumptuous in faith is forbidden and therefore a sin.  

In Luke 9:50, responding to His apostles stopping a man who was casting out demons in His name, Jesus forbade them from doing so.  In case you have forgotten, I will remind you that God’s children are only to move as God directs.  Choosing to do your own thing while disregarding God’s instructions ought to be recognized clearly as sin!

To show you how serious a crime being presumptuous in your faith is, Numbers 15:30-31 states:  “The person who does anything presumptuously (deliberately) reproaches (blasphemes) the Lord, and he shall be cut off from among his people.  Because he has despised the word of the Lord, and has broken His commandment, that person shall be completely cut off; his guilt shall be upon him.”

Blessings Blocked by Striving Against God

John the Baptist warned his disciples about being so presumptuous as to dare raise the idea of shutting down Jesus. John said to them, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven (John 3:27).”

John understood very well that the authority that had been given to him to baptize anyone was authority given to him by the Lord.  Moreover, John knew exactly who Jesus was, as he had proclaimed to his disciples that Jesus was the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world (John 1:29.

When John says that a man can receive nothing unless it comes from heaven, he speaks of knowing his place.  John knew that he was nothing without the Lord!  Therefore, John wasn’t going to go against the one who had blessed him to be a blessing to others!

Sadly, all it seems man has ever done is go against the one who has given him life!  Adam and Eve ate from the forbidden tree.  Cain murdered his brother in cold blood.  Before the flood, when man filled the earth, and the sons of God loved the women, man’s every intent was against God’s desires (Gen. 6:1-6). 

After the flood, man continued to strive against God!  Wanting to be gods, man made himself out to be kings and emperors over others.  Then, after Christ, man still strives against the Lord by mocking His word, His only begotten Son, and neglecting the salvation He has offered, as if he does not need saving.  Who are we to think and move in such a way?

There is a lesson we ought to take away from John 3:27 in that we need to stop biting the hand of Him that feeds us!  How do we bite His hand?  We often try to get ahead of the Lord, trying to force blessings to come our way.  Yet, I ask again, what good has come from being so presumptuous as to know better than the Lord?

Being presumptuous makes the journey that much harder because presumption puts you ahead of the Lord.  As I often like to point out, our blessings are with God, and not ahead of Him.  We make a mess of things by being so wise in our own eyes,to move ahead of God.  

Can we go against God and succeed?  As a great man once preached, ‘Our arms are too short to box with God’.

Can we do better than the Lord?  Can we bless ourselves better than God’s blessings?  

The only one who ever thought he could do better than the Sovereign God was Satan, and look at where that got him.  For rebelling against God, Satan was cast down from the mountain (Is. 14:12; Ezek. 28:13- Rev. 12:7-9).  For contending with the Lord, there is a place prepared for the devil where he and others who join him in rebellion will be cast.

Going against God, being wise in our own eyes, is how we block ourselves from our blessing.  Going against God is what makes living so difficult and so miserable.  

Total Surrender to God

What is it that you want in the life you live?  If you’re like me, you likely desire to live joyfully.  How can one live joyfully by contending with God?

What is total surrender?

For the joy of living, one must cry out as David cried out in Psalm 51:12.  David cried out to the Lord, “Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me by Your generous Spirit.”

David, the king of Israel, contended with the Lord after committing his great sin, and trying to hide it from the Lord.  In his wisdom, trying to hide from God, David sang of the agony he dealt with in Psalm 38, as he was set against God, and God against him.  

David cried out in total surrender to the Lord, understanding that it is better to be a friend of the Lord than an enemy.  David sought for God’s joy, rather than his own joy.  David sought the Lord to uphold him, rather than to uphold himself by his own might.  

You see, this is what a complete and total surrender looks like:  Giving up one’s perceived authority – pride, ego, and plans – for the joy of the Lord.

Decrease so that God can increase

John the Baptist responded to his disciples, saying to them, “[Christ] must increase, but I must decrease.”  His disciples were filled with pride and ego, but they needed to let that go, or else they would be bogged down in this world, not receiving anything from God.

We have all likely heard the phrase, “I must decrease so that He can increase,” but have we understood the sentiment?
John understood that it was not his place to be glorified, but rather, God was the one to be glorified.  Let’s stop right there!  How many of us understand that God is to be glorified in the world and not you?  God is the one who saves, not us!  Too many of us have main-character/hero syndrome, and that is unhealthy for us and those who are around us.

In my sermon, Life Is Not a Game, I preached about how the Christian’s life is not about self-glorification, but rather, we ought to live glorifying the Lord.  In John 15:7-8, Jesus taught that the Lord will give us what we desire so that we may bear fruit and glorify Him.  However, to receive such a blessing and exalt the Lord, one must surrender to the Lord, as His word must abide with you.

So, let me ask all of you this:  Does what you want in life fall in alignment with God’s desires?

Now, you may wonder: What are God’s desires?   The Lord has said that His thoughts towards His children are not evil, but are of peace, a future, and hope.  To be clear, God’s desire is for man to flourish and prosper together.  God’s desire is for one to lay up their treasures in heaven and not down here. 

I get that many of us want to flourish and prosper down here, in this world.  I too, want to dwell in some semblance of comfort and happiness, and I want my mom, my brother, my sister, niece, nephew, and others to also be happy.  

However, the happiness that I desire for them is not a happiness that comes from earthly gains!  This is where so many of us go wrong:  Happiness and so-called joy are dependent on earthly gains rather than God’s giving.  This too is another deception of the devil:  The earthly gains are real, and God’s gains are dreams and wishful thinking.

Satan has blinded and fooled many of us into believing the lie that we don’t need to surrender to the Lord for anything.  This is a lie that has destroyed lives and is certainly destroying lives today.  

However, I stand as the voice of one preaching the Lord today, and the need to surrender your perceived authority, pride, and ego so that you may truly live for joy.  You must get out of your way so that you can stop blocking the blessing of God’s joy from entering into your life.

When you receive the blessing of God’s joy, it will uphold you in the day when things aren’t going your way.  When you receive the blessing of God’s joy, it will uphold you in the day of nothing but bad news.  When you receive the blessing of God’s joy, it will help you to overcome every obstacle, rather than be crushed and destroyed.

So, again, I call on you today to get out of your way and surrender to the Lord.  At the moment of your surrender to Him, watch how God will exalt you!